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IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


1.1 


ta  Uii   12.2 

H^   |i£    12.0 


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Photographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


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23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14SS0 

(716)872-4503 


;^^ 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHIVI/ICIVIH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Instltuta  for  Hittorical  Microtaproduotiont  /  Inatitut  Canadian  da  microraproductlona  hiatoriquaa 


'^. 


Tschnical  and  Bibliographic  Notaa/Notas  tachniquas  at  bibliograpliiquas 


Tha  Instituta  has  attamptad  to  obtain  tha  baat 
original  copy  availabia  for  filming.  Faaturaa  of  thia 
copy  whicli  may  ba  bibliographically  uniqua. 
which  may  altar  any  of  tha  imagaa  in  tha 
raproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  changa 
tha  usual  mathod  of  filming,  ara  chaclcad  baiow. 


D 


Colourad  covars/ 
Couvartura  da  couiaur 


I     I   Covars  damagad/ 


D 


Couvartura  andommagia 


Covars  rastorad  and/or  laminatad/ 
Couvartura  rastaurte  at/ou  pallicuMa 


□   Covar  titia  miasing/ 
La  titra  da  couvartura  manqua 


|~~n   Colourad  mapa/ 


D 


Cartas  g^ographiquas  an  couiaur 


Colourad  ink  (i.a.  othar  than  blua  or  black)/ 
Encra  da  couiaur  (i.a.  autra  qua  blaua  ou  noira) 


□   Colourad  plataa  and/or  illuatrations/ 
Pianchas  at/ou  illustrations  an  couiaur 


Bound  with  othar  matarial/ 
RaliA  avac  d'autras  documants 


n 


n 


Tight  binding  may  causa  shadovirs  or  distortion 
along  intarior  margin/ 
La  re  liura  sarrAa  paut  causar  da  I'ombra  ou  da  la 
distortion  la  long  da  la  marga  int4riaura 

Blank  laavas  addad  during  rastoration  may 
appaar  within  tha  taxt.  Whanavar  possibla.  thasa 
hava  baan  omittad  from  filming/ 
II  sa  paut  qua  cartainaa  pagas  blanchas  ajouttes 
lors  d'una  rastauration  apparaissant  dans  la  taxta. 
mais,  lorsqua  cala  Mait  possibla.  cas  pagas  n'ont 
pas  At*  filmtea. 

Additional  commants:/ 
Commantalras  supplAmantairas: 


L'Institut  a  microfilm*  la  maillaur  axamplaira 
qu'il  lul  a  iti  possibla  da  sa  procurar.  Las  details 
da  cat  axamplaira  qui  sont  paut-Atra  uniquas  du 
point  da  vua  bibiiographiqua.  qui  pauvant  modif  iar 
una  imaga  raproduita.  ou  qui  pauvant  axiger  una 
modification  dans  la  mithoda  normala  da  fiimage 
sont  indiqute  ci-dassous. 


|~~|   Colourad  pagas/ 


Pagas  da  couiaur 

Pagas  damagad/ 
Pagas  endommag6as 


□   Pagas  rastorad  and/or  laminatad/ 
Pagas  rastaurAas  at/ou  palliculias 

0^1 


Pagas  discolourad,  stainad  or  foxad/ 
Pagas  dicolories.  tachattes  ou  piquAes 


□   Pagas  datachad/ 
Pagas  ditachies 

r~T/§howthrough/ 
Ud  Transparanca 

I      I    Quality  of  print  varies/ 


D 


Qua!it6  inigaia  da  I'impression 

Includes  supplamentary  natarial/ 
Comprend  du  material  suppi^mantaira 

Only  edition  available/ 
Saula  Edition  disponibia 


Pagas  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissuas,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  bast  possibla  imaga/ 
Las  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillat  d'errata,  una  pelure, 
etc.,  ont  M  fiimias  A  nouveau  da  fapon  A 
obtanir  la  mailleure  image  possible. 


to 


Tl 

P< 
of 
fii 


Oi 
be 
th 
sk 
ot 
fir 
si( 
or 


Th 
sh 
TJ 

wl 

Ml 
dil 
an 
ba 

rig 
rei 
m« 


This  itam  is  filmad  at  the  reduction  ratio  chocked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  fiimA  au  taux  da  reduction  indiquA  ci-dassous. 

10X  14X  18X  22X 


26X 


30X 


y 


12X 


16X 


IDX 


24X 


28X 


32X 


The  copy  filmed  here  has  been  reproduced  thanke 
to  the  generosity  of: 

Nationai  Library  of  Canada 


L'exemplaire  fllmA  fut  reproduit  grice  A  la 
gtntrositi  de: 

BibliothAque  nationale  du  Canada 


The  imeges  appearing  here  are  the  beet  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Les  images  suivantes  ont  tt^  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  at 
de  la  nettetA  de  I'exempleire  film«,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmege. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  micrcfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  —^(meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 


Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimte  sont  f  ilmte  en  commenpant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminent  soit  par  la 
dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustrotion,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  salon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
origineux  sont  filmte  en  commenpant  par  la 
premiAre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustrstion  et  en  terminent  par 
la  derniAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
■r  empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparattra  sur  la 
dernlAre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
ces:  le  symbols  «►  signifie  "A  SUIVRE",  le 
symbols  V  signifie  "FIN". 


IVIeps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  mey  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  Atre 
filmte  k  des  taux  de  reduction  diff^rents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  dtre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clich6, 11  est  fiimA  A  partir 
de  I'angle  supArieur  gauche,  de  gauche  A  droite, 
et  de  heut  en  bes,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  nAcessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  methods. 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

NARRATIVE 


or  THE 


ADVENTURES  AND  SUFFERINGS 


or 


CAPTAIN  DANIEL  D.  HEUSTIS 


AND  HIS  COMPANIONS, 


im 


CANADA  AND  TAN  DIEMAN'S  LAND, 

DURING  A  LONG    CAPTIVITY; 


WITH 


TRAVELS  IN  CALIFORNIA, 


AND 


VOYAGES  AT  SEA. 


SECOND     EDITION. 


BOS  TON: 
l^UBLISHED    BV   SILAS   W.  WILDER  &   CO. 

1  848. 


1^ 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congrpss,  in  the  year  1847, 

Bi   Silas  W.  Wildkr  and  Damei.  D.  Heustis, 

In  the  Clerk'a  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  Massachusctta. 


CONTENTS. 


Page. 
[mtroductioNi 7 


CHAPTER  1. 

Early  Life  —  Residence  in  Roxbury,  Massachusetts — Removal  to 
Watertown,  New  York  —  Travels  in  Canada — Sympathy  for  the 
Canadian  People  —  The  Outbreak  in  Lower  Canada  —  Battles  of 
JSt  Dennis,  St  Charles,  and  St  Eustache, 15 


CHAPTER  n. 

Attempted  Revolution  in  Upper  Canada  —  Escape  of  the  Leaders 
to  the  United  States  —  Occupation  of  Navy  Island  —  Destruction 
of  the  Caroline  —  Enlistment  of  the  Author,  and  Journey  to  Buf- 
falo—  Evacuation  of  Navy  Island  —  The  Watertown  Arsena' 
Guns  —  Hickory  Island  —  General  Van  Rensselaer, 24 


CHAPTER    in. 

I  Arrest  of  the  Author — Journey  to  Auburn  in  Charge  of  the  U.  S. 

I  Marshal  —  Amusing  Incident  —  Curiosity  to  see  a  Famous  Man  — 
Examination  befbre  Judge  Conklin  —  Discharge  —  Examination 
of  Benjamin  Collins  —  The  Witnesses — Trials  in  Canada  —  Ex- 
ecution of  Lount  and  Matthews 34 


CHAPTER   IV. 

Organization  of  Patriot  Lodges  —  Burning  of  the  Sir  Robert  Peel  — 
Scheme  to  liberate  the  Niagara  Prisoners  —  Preparations  for  tho 
Attack  on  Prescott  —  Embarkation  at  Sackett's  Harbor  —  Deser- 


IV 


CONTENTS. 


Pago. 


tion  —  Unsuccessful  Attempt  to  land  at  Prescott  —  Going  ashore 
at  Windmill  Point — OurFlaff  unfurled  —  A  Naval  Exploit — 
Supper  at  a  Farm-House  — Colonel  Von  Shoultz  appointed  Com- 
mander-in  Chief, 41 


CHAPTER   V. 

Approach  of  the  British  —  Unprotected  Females  shot  —  Battle  or 
Prescott  —  Hard  Fighting  —  Deatlis  of  Phillips,  Brown,  But- 
terfield,  and  Jolmson  — Capture  of  Daniel  George  and  others  — 
Wheelock  and  Finney  wounded  —  A  Stormy  Night  —  Suffer- 
ings of  the  Wounded  — The  Dead  on  the  Field  of  Battle  —  A 
Visit  from  Ogdensburgh  —  Attempt  to  remove  the  Wounded  — 
An  Escape  —  Armistice  for  burying  the  Dead  —  The  Enemy 
reinforced  —  Their  Compliments  returned  —  Interference  of  U.  S 
Officers  —  The  Surrender, 47 


CHAPTER   VI. 

The  March  to  Prescott — Tortures  of  the  Wounded  —  The  Passage 
to  Kingston  —  Confinement  in  Fort  Henry  —  The  Names,  Age, 
and  Residence  of  the  Heroes  of  Prescott — List  of  the  Killed  and 
Wounded  —  Loss  of  the  Enemy  —  Money  sent  to  the  Prisoners 
by  their  Friends  —  Filtliy  Bread — Robbery  —  Style  of  Living  — 
A  Christmas  Present  —  Trial  and  Execution  of  Von  Shoultz  — 
Incidents  in  his  Romantic  Career, 59 


■■T<' 


CHAPTER   VII. 


The  Reign  of  Terror  —  Execution  of  several  Prisoners — Com- 
ments of  the  Democratic  Review  on  these  hideous  Murders  — 
The  Autlior*s  Trial  —  Anecdote  of  «  Old  Hicks"— -Character  of 
Sheriff  McDonald  —  His  Profanity  —  Uncommon  Vigilance  to 
prevent  our  Escape  — Visits  from  our  Friends  —  Private  Money 
smuggled  into  the  Prison  —  Six  Breakfasts  eaten  by  one  Man  — 
Pardon  of  a  Portion  of  the  Prisoners  —  Mrs.  Skinner's  Effort  in 
my  Behalf —  A  Visit  from  the  Governor  —  Celebration  of  the 
Fourth  of  July  in  Prison, 72 


CHAPTER    Vm. 

Removal  from  Fort  Henry  to  Quebec  —  Embarkation  on  board  the 
,    Ship  Buffalo  —  An  Account  of  the  Battle  of  Windsor  —  Descrip- 
tion of  the  Buffalo  —  Division  of  the  Prisoners  into  Messes  — Our 
Manner  of  Living  —  A  Storm  —  Scheme  to  capture  the  Ship  — 


CONTENTS. 


ig  ashore 
Jxoloit — 
tcdCom- 


Death  of  Asa  Priest — A  Funeral  at  Sea — Anival  at  Rio 
Janeiro — Yankee  Seamanship  —  A  Flogging — Doubling  the 
Cape  —  Van  Dieman's  Land, 83 


kTTLE  or 
iwn,  But- 
others  — 
—  Suffer- 
ittle— A 
lunded  — 
8  Enemy 
ieofU.S 


e  Passage 
mes,  Age, 
Cillcd  ami 
Prisoners 
Living  — 
Shoultz  — 


59 


rs  —  Com- 
durdcrs  — 
tiaracter  of 
gilance  to 
ate  Money 
ne  Man  — 
3  Eifort  in 
ion  of  the 


T2 


i  board  the 
—  Descnp- 

3888  —  Our 
he  Ship  — 


CHAPTER   IX. 

The  Disembartation  —  A  Speech  fVom  the  Governor — Change  of 
Clothes  —  Work  on  the  Road  —  The  Rations  —  Death  and  Burial 
of  McLeod  —  Fruitless  Endeavors  to  find  his  Grave— Lines  by 
h.  W.  Miller — Deaths  of  McNulty,  Van  Camp,  Curtis,  Nottage, 
and  Williams  —  An  Attempt  to  escape,  by  Reynolds,  Paddock, 
Cooley,  &nd  Murray  —  Tlieir  Capture  and  Sentence  to  Port  Ar- 
tlmr  —  Intcresiing  Incident  —  Sufferings  of  the  Prisoners, 99 


CHAPTER   X. 

I  Lovely  Banks  —  Robbery  in  Bagdad  Jail —  Horrid  Sufferings  —  A 
Scheme  to  obtain  Liberty  —  Miller  and  Stewart  sent  to  Port  Ar- 
thur—  Our  Removal  to  Green  Ponds  —  Atchison,  the  Negro 
Driver — Dishonest  Superintendents  —  The  Bridgewater  ^- 
tion  —  Dispersion  of  our  Party  —  The  Author  and  twenty-one 
otliers  sent  to  Brown's  River  —  Cruel  Floggings  —  Criminality 
of  eating  a  Sheep's  Head  —  Captain  Jones, 108 


,:  V         ,  CHAPTER   XL 

[Our  partial  Emancipation — Journey  into  the  Interior  —  The  Good 
Woman's  Inn  —  Lodgings  by  the  Wayside — ^Mona  Vale  —  Mr. 
Kermode's  Farm  —  Agreement  to  cultivate  it  on  Shar^ra  —  Death 
and  Burial  of  Alson  Owen,  at  Rothbury  —  Celeb,  .l-^n  of  the 
Fourth  of  July  —  A  successful  Experiment  in  cradling  Wheat,. . 


117 


CHAPTER   XII. 


The  Author  visited  by  his  Brother  —  Hunting  Bush-Rangers  — 
Dresser  and  Wright  pardoned  —  The  new  Governor — His  Opin- 
ion of  the  Legality  of  our  Imprisonment  —  A  Petition  for  our 
Pardon  —  Another  unsuccessful  Attempt  to  Abscond  —  Trial  be- 
fore a  Magistrate  — Cheating  the  Laborer  of  his  Wages  —  The 
Pardon  —  Captain  Skinner,  of  tlie  Phoenix, 123 


CHAPTER   XIIL 

Adieu  to  Van  Dieman's  Land —The  Whale-Ship  Steiglitz  —  The 
Boston  Atlas  Extra  —  Death  of  a  Sailor  —  A  Ship  in  Distress  — 


r 


vi 


CONTENTS. 


Pace 


Killings  Whalea  —  Dinner  with  a  King  at  tiio  Society  Islands  — 
Arrival  at  Honolulu  —  Kind  Reception  —  Departure  for  Califor- 
nia—  Arrival  at  Monterey, 131 


CHAPTER   XIV. 

Preparations  to  cross  the  Rocky  Mountains  —  Commencement  of 
the  Journey  —  Incidents  on  the  Route  —  Arrival  at  Ncuva  Hel- 
vetia— Captain  Sutter — Further  Travels — Sickness  of  the 
Guide — Abandonment  of  tlio  Expedition  —  Extensive  Travels 
in  California  —  Description  of  tho  Country  —  Its  Agricultural  and 
Commercial  Advantages — Voyage  to  Valparaiso — Return  Homo 
in  the  Ship  Edward  Everett 142 


CHAPTER   XV. 

The  English  Criminal  Code — Eftablishment  of  Penal  Colonies  — 
Settlement  of  Van  Dieman*s  Land  —  Description  of  the  Country  — 
Extermination  of  the  Natives — Cruelty  of  Sir  George  Arthur  — 
Ruthless  Policy  of  Enffland  —  Chartists  in  Exile  —  Interesting 
Letter  from  the  Honorable  Edward  Everett, 154 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

Present  Condition  of  Canada  —  Sir  Francis  Bond  Head's  *<  Emi- 
grant " —  Disaffection  of  tho  Loyalists  —  Appointment  of  Patriots 
to  Office  —  Inconsistency  manifested  by  the  Government  in  these 
Appointments  —  Concluding  Reflections, 1G4 


w 

e 

ki 
ai 

c< 
c; 


w 


slands  — 
r  Califor- 


Pofie. 


131 


cement  of 
Buva  Hol- 
of  the 
Travels 
iltural  and 
urn  Homo 


142 


INTRODUCTION. 


THE     CANADIAN     MOVEMENT. 


BT    BENJ.  KINGSBURT,  JR. 


lolonies — 
Uountry  — 
Arthur  — 
ntercsting 


154 


id's  "Emi- 
of  Patriots 
nt  in  these 


1C4 


The  true  history  of  this  movement  is  yet  to  be  written;  and,  when 
written,  it  will  be  a  triumphant  vindication  of  the  patriotic  spirits  en- 
gaged  in  it    Justice  may  move  slowly,  but  it  is  certam. 

The  policy  of  tlie  British  government  toward  its  colonies  is  well 
known.  It  is,  and  ever  has  been,  to  get  as  mwh  out  of  them  as  possible^ 
at  the  smallest  cost. 

This  policy  has  been  stoadily  pursued  ever  since  the  infamous  and 
cowardly  treaty  of  Paris,  in  1763.  The  people  have  been  peeled, 
crushed,  deprived  of  nearly  every  right,  fined,  taxed,  imprisoned,  until, 
from  men,  they  have  been  reduced  almost  to  the  level  of  things. 

We  lack  space  —  neither  is  it  in  unison  with  the  design  of  this  work  — 
to  enter  into  minute  detail  relative  to  tlie  past  history  of  the  Canadas. 
A  rough  outline  must  suffice. 

When  New  Prance  was  made  over  to  England,  the  bulk  of  the 
population  was  of  French  descent,  and  so  continues,  although  the  im- 
migration of  Anglo-Saxons  has  reduced  the  proportional  majority.  It 
would  seem  that  toward  this  important  class  true  policy  would  have 
dictated  conciliation;  but  the  Court  of  St  James  thought  otherwise. 
Their  rights  of  property  have  been  violated,  and,  until  very  recently, 
they  have  been  excluded  from  every  place  of  honor  or  emolument 
This  proscription,  together  with  a  succession  of  unremitting  exactions 
and  petty  oppressions,  has  kept  them  in  a  state  of  semi-revolt  Like 
gunpowder,  the  spark  was  but  wanting  to  cause  an  explosion. 

But  tyranny  stopped  not  with  this  insulted  class.  The  iron  hand  has 
been  laid  upon  the  whole  people.    The  British  government  threw  a  **  tub 


8 


INTRODUCTION. 


i 


to  tlift  whale  **  in  1791,  by  dividinsf  the  Province  of  Quebec  into  Upper 
and  Lower  Canada,  and  giving  a  constitution  for  the  government  of  each : 
a  constitution  which  Gov.  Siincoe,  the  first  executive  of  Upper  Canada, 
in  his  opening  speech,  pronounced  "the  very  image  and  transcript 
of  that  of  England."  Practically,  the  "  image "  proved  to  be  o  mere 
charcoal  caricature.  Notoriously  bad  as  is  the  structure  of  the  British 
constitution,  tliis  was  found,  in  its  working,  to  be  infinitely  worse. 
Those  who  made  the  constitution  neutralized  the  whole,  by  providing 
tiiat  the  Legislative  Council  should  be  appointed  ly  the  Executive,  and 
that  this  irresponoible  body  should  have  a  veto  on  the  bills  passed  by  the 
People's  House.  This  power  was  exercised  to  the  utmost  The  most 
beneficial  acts  of  the  popular  branch  were  almost  invariably  reject- 
ed ;  especially  tltose  which  were  colculated  to  elevate  the  masses,  give 
character  to  tlie  country,  throw  open  to  enterprise  her  uncultivated 
soil  and  affluent  streams,  and  extend  her  trade.  Bills  for  general  com- 
mon school  education ;  for  encouraging  emigrants  of  capital  to  sett'io ; 
for  securing  the  purity  of  trial  by  jury,  by  an  impartial  selection  of  jury- 
men ;  for  abolishing  the  feudal  law  of  primogeniture ;  for  regulating  the 
mode  of  elections,  so  as  to  protect  the  rights  of  citizens ;  for  reforming 
the  overgrown  salaries  of  officials ;  for  exempting  Quakers  and  other 
religionists  from  bearing  arms,  and  from  militia  fines  in  time  of  peace ; 
and  scores  of  others,  of  like  character,  were  scornfully  tlirown  under  the 
table,  afler  they  had  been  matured  by  tlie  lower  house  in  accordance 
with  « the  will  of  the  people." 

Let  us  look  a  moment  at  the  cost  of  thus  misgoverning  the  Canadas, 
at  the  time  of  the  outbreak.  Lord  Gosford  had  $44,000  a  year,  for 
oppressing  the  600,000  people  of  Lower  Canada,  and  Sir  Francis  Head 
had  $22,000,  for  taking  the  same  kind  care  of  tlie  .300,000  people 
of  Upper  Canada.  The  salary  of  the  Attorney-General  of  Upper  Cana- 
da was  $4,800;  that  of  the  Solicitor-General  $3,000;  that  of  the  Chief 
Justice  about  $8,000,  and  each  of  the  five  Judges  $4,400.  The  Gover- 
nor's Secretary  had  a  handsome  salary,  with  an  addition  of  six  dollars 
tor  every  marriage  license.  The  Postmaster-General  of  the  Provinces, 
who^  with  the  above-named  functionaries,  was  appointed  by  the  home 
government,  received  an  enormous  annual  income  from  salary  and 
perquisites.  The  above  must  suffice  as  specimens  of  the  innumerable 
host  of  foreign  leeches  that  were  sucking  the  life-blood  of  the  colonies. 
**  Their  name  is  legion." 

During  the  three  or  four  years  preceding  the  insurrection,  the  Assem- 


INTIIUDUCTION. 


ic  into  Upper 
nent  of  each : 
ppcr  Canada, 
nd  transcript 
3  be  a  more 
}f  the  British 
nitcly  worse, 
by  providing 
Executive,  and 
)a88ed  by  the 
t  The  most 
riabty  reject- 
masses,  give 
uncultivated 
general  com- 
tal  to  sett'io; 
ction  ofjury- 
cgulating  the 
for  reforming 
3rs  and  other 
me  of  peace ; 
wn  under  the 
accordance 

the  Canadas, 

)  a  year,  for 

•"rancis  Head 

9,000  people 

Upper  Cana- 

of  the  Chief 

The  Gover- 

>f  six  dollars 

le  Provinces, 

liy  the  home 

salary  and 

innumerable 

the  colonies. 

,  the  Assem- 


bly of  the  Ijowcr  Province  refused  to  raise  the  money  for  official  salaries, 
because  many  of  the  recipients  were  pluralists,  holding  offices  inconsist- 
cnt  with  each  other,  and  because  they  had  all  uniformly  opposed  every 
elTort  of  the  people  for  redress.  The  British  Parliament,  however,  "  cut 
the  gordian  knot,"  by  passing  a  resolution,  taking  seven  hundred  and 
sixty  thousand  dollars  out  of  the  provincial  treasury,  to  pay  these  mer- 
cenary hirelings ;  and  this  in  defiance  of  the  strenuous  opposition 
of  O'Connoll,  Brougham,  and  even  the  Duke  of  Wellington.  Of  this 
outrage  tlie  Westminster  Review  spoke  thus: — 

"  The  House  of  Assembly,  unable  to  procure  the  redress  of  certain 
grievances,  has  for  some  time  refused  to  vote  the  supplies.  The  whig 
administration  has  thereupon  proposed  to  the  House  or  Commons  certain 
resohitiony,  to  the  effect  that  the  grievances  of  the  Canadians  shall  not  he 
redressed,  and  that  the  Governor  of  the  Provmce  shall  be  authorized  to 
appropriate  the  public  moneys  without  the  consent  of  the  House  of  As- 
sembly. Tiiis  proceeding  is  in  direct  violation  of  the  constitution 
of  Lower  Canada,  as  settled  by  the  act  of  the  31st  George  HI.  c.  31. 
This  act  of  the  whigs  is  founded  upon  the  expectation  that  the  people 
are  too  feeble  to  resist" 

The  ovcr-Iadcn  back  will  either  break  or  endeavor  to  cast  off  ita  load. 

It  was  so  with  the  Canadians.    They  had  submitted  to  official  insolence, 

to  foreign  domination,  to  excessive  taxation,  to  unequal  and  oppressive 

duties,  to  restriction  of  trade,  until  submission,  instead  of  being  a  virtue, 

became  cowardice.    The  living  thousands  were  at  last  aroused.    The 

"0  deatli-sleep  had  passed  off.    But  they  did  not,  even  then,  resolve  upon 

I  adopting  the  dernier  resort.     They  remonstrated,  as  they  had  often  done 

before,  earnestly,  eloquently,  indignantly.    They  laid  a  complete  and 

unanswerable  statement  of  facts  at  the  foot  of  the  throne.     It  was 

spurned.    They  tried  another  course.    At  tlie  suggestion  of  Papineau, 

they  formed  a  commercial  league  against  the  mother  country.    The 

French  Canadians  bound  themselves  by  oath  to  use  exclusively  home 

M  products,  or  those  of  the  United  States.    This  brought  matters  to  a 

||  crisis.    They  had  at  last  touched  the  most  sensitive  nerve  of  the  "nation 

of  shopkeepers  "  —  the  pocket. 

The  Canadians  have  been  censured  for  rushing  precipitately  into 

rebellion,  so  totally  unprepared  as  the  result  proved  them  to  be.    They 

had  an  avalanche  of  numbers,  but  they  lacked  organization,  discipline, 

arms,    ammunition,    and    money.     How,  it   is  very  properly    asked, 

couid  they  have  expected  to  resist  successfully  the  drilled  soldiery 
I* 


10 


INTRODUCTION. 


of  Great  Britain  ?  To  this  we  reply  —  they  were  forced  into  the  measure 
by  the  government,  against  their  will  and  judgment.  They  had  by  no 
means  exhausted  the  peaceful  resources  ut  their  command.  This  matter 
is  briefly  but  fully  explained  by  M.  Papineau,  in  an  historical  work, 
quoted  by  M.  Regnault,  in  his  «  Criminal  History  of  the  British  Govem- 
ment."    M  Papineau  says : — 

"  I  challenge  the  English  government  to  deny,  when  I  affirm,  that  none 
of  us  were  prepared  for,  expected,  wished,  or  even  anticipated  an  armed 
resistance.  But  the  English  government  had  resolved  to  rob  the  province 
of  its  revenue  and  its  representative  system ;  it  had  resolved  to  devote 
some  of  us  to  death,  and  others  to  exile ;  it  was  for  this  that  martial  law 
was  proclaimed,  and  the  citizens  were  tried  by  court-martial  for  acts 
which  it  was  decided,  ^ome  weeks  before,  formed  no  ground  for  accusa- 
tion ;  founding  the  necessity  of  creating  military  tribunals  on  the  im- 
possibility of  obtaining  sentence  of  death  from  the  civil  tribunals.  Yes, 
once  more  the  executive  power,  having  in  view  the  interests  of  tlie 
metropolis,  formed  inhuman  combinations  against  innocent  men,  which 
had  been  admitted  to  be  illegal ;  the  provocation  came  from  it,  but  the 
insurrection  was  not  lawful.  We  had  resolved  not  yet  to  rebel.  This  has 
been  proved  to  the  government  by  our  papers,  which  have  been  seized , 
a  government  which  calumniates,  in  order  to  become  persecutors." 

This  is  the  testimony  of  a  man  of  unimpeachable  character,  and  the 
acknowledged  leader  of  the  masses  of  Lower  Canada.  He  was  em- 
phatically tlie  O'CoNNELL  of  his  country. 

The  facts  corroborate  his  evidence.  While  the  people  were  confining 
their  action  strictly  within  constitutional  limits,  Papineau  was  accused 
of  treason,  but  escaped  to  France;  and  leading  Patriots,  in  and  out 
of  Montreal,  were  arrested  and  imprisoned.  Collision  with  tiie  populace 
was  provoked  by  the  British  soldiery,  at  the  instigation  of  the  gov- 
ernment, and   THE    INSCRRECTION    COMMENCED. 

We  need  not  relate  the  particulars  of  that  disastrous  struggle.  They 
are  too  fresh  to  be  forgotten.  But  if  ever  a  people  were  justified  in 
appealmg  to  the  last  argument,  the  Canadians  were  so,  before  God  and 
man.  Wrongs  were  perpetrated  upon  them  at  which  the  Czar  of  Rus- 
sia would  blush ;  and  he  who  would  condemn  thenij  must,  witli  tlirice 
the  emphasis,  condemn  the  American  revolution;  a  revolution  sanc- 
tioned by  the  deliberate  verdict  of  all  Europe. 

Many  are  in  tlie  habit  of  looking  at  results  instead  of  causes,  and 
judging  accordingly  of  the  merit  of  a  movement.  If  successful,  the  rebel 
becomes  a  hero ;  if  unsuccessful,  a  traitor.  Such  men  have  yet  much 
to  learn,  before  their  wisdom  will  be  perfect. 


INTRODUCTION. 


tl 


e  measure 
lad  by  no 
his  matter 
ical  work, 
li  Govem- 


,  that  none 
an  armed 
ic  province 
to  devote 
nartial  law 
al  for  acts 
"or  accusa- 
on  the  im- 
lals.  Yes, 
!Sts  of  tlie 
nen,  which 
it,  but  the 
This  has 
en  seized, 
tors." 


ir,  and  the 
e  was  em- 
confining 
as  accused 
in  and  out 
le  populace 
f  the  gov- 

gle.  They 
justified  in 
re  God  and 
sar  of  Rus- 
witli  tlirice 
ition  sane- 
causer,  and 
ul,  the  rebel 
;  yet  much 


The  Patriots,  though  engaged  in  a  conflict  almost  void  of  hope,  fought 
bravely,  gloriously.  The  whole  country  was  roused.  Beacon  fires 
blazed  on  every  hill-top,  and  the  green  valleys  teemed  with  strong  hearts 
ready  for  martyrdom.  They  baptized  many  a  battle-field  with  their 
blood,  and  caused  thousands  of  the  British  soldiery  to  bite  tlie  dust 
Weak,  undisciplined,  unorganized,  without  provisions,  arms,  or  ammuni- 
tion, they  yet  proved  themselves  no  contemptible  foe.  Had  they 
possessed  but  the  ordinary  means  for  such  a  contest,  British  dominion 
would  long  since  have  ceased  in  North  America.  No  towering  mon- 
ument perpetuates  the  glory  of  their  achievements,  and  none  is  needed. 
The  heart  of  every  friend  of  liberty  enshrines  their  memory. 

The  end  is  not  yet.  The  fire,  once  kindled,  never  expires.  It  may 
smoulder  beneath  tlie  surface,  unperceived  by  human  eye,  but  it  will 
break  out  again  with  added  power.  With  the  people  of  Canada,  it  is 
now  a  settled  opinion  that  they  shall  sooner  or  later  be  independent 
They  are  beginning  to  feel  their  strength.  The  British  government  is 
itself  conscious  that  its  hold  is  fast  relaxing.  Its  legislation  indicates 
an  intention  to  procrastinaiej  rather  than  totally  to  avoid,  the  result 
The  union  of  the  two  Provinces  in  one,  which  was  insolently  termed  a 
measure  of  pacification,  is  a  failure.  It  robs  tlie  French  of  Lower 
Canada  of  their  proi^ortionate  influence,  and  thus  keeps  them  in  a  state 
of  irritation.  The  honest  truth  is,  the  home  government  cannot  legislate 
successfully  for  the  Provinces ;  and  if  they  do  not  themselves  sever  the 
chain  the  people  will  do  it  for  them. 

"  Revolutions  never  go  backward."  It  is  a  trite  but  emphatic 
truth,  demonstrated  a  thousand  times  in  the  history  of  the  past,  and  will 
be  a  thousand  times  in  the  history  of  the  future.  A  revolution  once 
started  on  its  course,  its  termination  is  as  certain  as  the  pathway  of  the 
sun.  Like  that  glorious  luminary,  it  may  be  veiled  in  cloud,  but  it  will 
still  travel  on  behind  the  cloud.  It  moves  on  when  no  mortal  eye  can 
see  it;  it  moves  on  when  the  calm  of  deathlike  quiet  seems  to  pervade 
the  whole  land.  Wake  but  the  dormant  principle  of  liberty  in  the  bosom, 
and  all  the  gilded  opiates  of  tyranny  cannot  hush  it  to  sleep  again. 
How  many  times  did  the  American  revolution  appear  to  be  at  an  end, 
with  its  purpose  unaccomplished !  Traitors  and  mutineers  in  our  own 
camp ;  a  broken  currency ;  a  starved  and  unpaid  militia ;  a  hundred 
adverse  influences,  conspired  to  crush  the  enterprise.  But  the  people 
had  wrongs  to  redress ;  wrongs  that  burned  at  the  heart's  core ;  wrongs 
that  made  them  oblivious  of  suffering;  and  they  conquertd.    The  same 


12 


INTUODUCTIOiN. 


!  . 


t 


spirit,  and  tlie  same  oppression,  that  pushed  our  revolutionary  sirea 
onward  in  the,  thorny  path  to  victory,  will  influence  tlie  people  of  the 
Provinces.  British  des{x>tism  may  deprive  every  patriot  of  his  weapon ; 
may  crowd  the  cells  of  their  prisons,  and  the  holds  of  their  transport 
vessels ;  but  tlie  principle  will  exist  and  operate,  silently  perhaps,  but 
effectually,  until,  like  the  little  leaven,  it  "has  leavened  tlie  whole 
lump." 

The  connection  of  citizens  of  the  United  States  with  tlie  Canadian 
movement  has  been  the  theme  of  no  stinted  denunciation.  Upon  this 
point  we  have  space  but  for  few  words.  The  act  of  Congress,  of  April 
20,  1818,  provides,  "that  if  any  person  shall,  within  the  territory  or 
jurisdiction  of  the  United  States,  begin  or  set  on  foot,  and  provide  or 
prepare  tlie  means,  for  any  military  expedition  or  enterprise,  to  be  carried 
on  from  thence  against  the  territories  or  dominions  of  any  foreign  prince 
or  state,  or  of  any  colony,  district  or  people,  with  whom  the  United 
States  arc  at  peace,  any  person  so  offending  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a 
high  misdemeanor,  and  shall  be  lined  not  exceeding  three  thousand 
dollars,  and  imprisoned  not  more  than  three  years." 

If  an  infraction  of  tliis  law  was  committed  —  a  point,  by  the  way, 
which  it  is  not  our  province  now  to  discuss  —  E:!voiiAND,  at  least,  has  no 
right  to  complain.  That  government  is  world-famous  for  its  total  disre- 
gard of  international  obligations ;  and  its  treaties  with  otlier  powers, 
especially  minor  ones,  have  been  repeatedly  broken. 

Let  us  cite  an  instance ;  one  of  the  many  acts  of  provocation  and 
insult  which  aroused  the  spirit  of  liberty  in  the  breasts  of  tlie  patriotic 
citizens  of  our  country  residing  on  the  frontier.  The  American  steamer 
Caroline  was  quietly  moored  at  the  wharf  of  a  port  in  the  State  of  New 
Y'ork.  She  had  no  connection  with  the  Patriots,  a  considerable  body 
of  whom  then  occupied  Navy  Island.  She  had  made  a  few  trips  to  the 
island,  carrying  passengers,  each  one  paying  his  fare.  This  was  a 
lawful  and  legitimate  business.  At  the  dead  of  night,  while  this  vessel 
was  thus  lying  at  an  American  wharf,  with  several  peaceful  American 
citizens  sleeping  on  board,  a  band  of  anned  British  tories,  acting  under 
the  orders  of  their  commanding  officer,  crossed  over  from  the  C  lada 
side,  boarded  the  steamer,  murdered  several  innocent  persons,  ap,  lied 
the  incendiary's  torch,  and  sent  the  burning  vessel  over  the  falls  of  Ni- 
agara, with  living  men,  as  is  generally  believed,  on  board !  What  did 
the  British  government  ?  Did  they  make  prompt  and  ample  restitution,  so 
far  08  in  their  power,  for  this  outrageous  infraction  of  international  law  ? 


INTRODUCTION. 


13 


lary  sires 
pie  of  the 
3  weapon; 
■  transport 
rhaps,  but 
tlie  whole 

I  Canadian 
Upon  tliis 
IS,  of  April 
erritory  or 
provide  or 

be  carried 
eign  prince 
the  United 

guilty  of  a 
e  thousand 

Y  the  way, 
>ast,  has  no 
total  disre- 
ler  powers, 

)cation  and 
le  patriotic 
an  steamer 
ate  of  New 
rable  body 
trips  to  the 
his  was  a 
this  vessel 
American 
ting  under 
the  C  lada 
>ns,  ap,  lied 
alls  of  Ni- 
What  did 
titution,  so 
tional  law  ? 


Did  they  punish  tlie  incendiaries  and  murderers  ?  No !  They  formally 
sustained  the  act,  and  rewarded  with  high  honors  the  perpetrators  of  it ! 
Prom  that  hour  to  this  the  wrong  remains  unredressed.  The  American 
people  demanded  energetic  action  from  our  government ;  and  the  demand 
was  met  by  expending  quires  of  paper  and  quarts  of  ink !  The  whole 
affair  evaporated  in  official  correspondence;  and,  when  the  Ashburton 
treaty  was  on  the  tapis,  it  was  thrown  into  the  scale  as  a  make-weight. 

The  tyrants  of  England,  and  the  tyrants  of  all  other  countries,  may 
be  assured  that,  whenever  and  wherever  an  effort  is  made  to  "  cast  the 
corda  "  of  oppression  off,  the  great  heart  of  the  American  nation  will 
respond.  It  is  no  infraction  of  enactments  to  fed  or  to  speak  our  sym- 
pathy, or  to  transmit  means  for  the  contest* 

Who  does  not  recollect  how  the  popular  pulse  throbbed  when  the 
news  reached  us  that  Greece  —  famed  in  song  and  story  —  with  the 
upraised  cross,  was  struggling  against  the  crescent;  that  Poland  had 
bearded  the  Bear  of  Russia ;  that  young  Texas  had  stricken  itself  from 
the  roll  of  Mexican  dependencies !  The  chivalry  of  the  nation  was 
roused,  and  thousands  of  our  gallant  spirits  rushed  to  the  battle-field. 
All  tlie  means  necessary  to  continue  these  contests  were  freely  furnished* 
The  press  was  pregnant  with  good  will ;  thronged  assemblies  were 
convened ;  loud  huzzas  answered  to  eloquent  appeals ;  and  the  whole 
people  were  moved  as  by  the  upheaving  of  the  volcano.  Yet  were  we 
"  at  peace  "  with  Turkey,  with  Russia,  and  with  Mexico. 

Those  of  our  citizens  who  passed  over  the  line,  and  took  sides  with 
the  Canadians  on  their  own  soil,  had  the  legal  right  to  do  so.  And  the 
act  was  heroic.  If  he  who  bravely  throws  himself  into  the  melee  with 
hope  and  triumph  before  him  deserves  renown,  much  more  does  ke  who 
fights  under  the  certainty  of  ultimate  defeat    If  he  who  joins  his  own 


*0n  the  question  of  national  neutrality.  Chancellor  Kent,  in  vol.  1,  p.  142,  of  his 
Commentaries,  says :  "  It  was  contended,  on  the  part  of  the  French  nation,  in 
1796,  that  neutral  governments  were  hound  to  restrain  their  subjects  from  selling 
or  exporting  articles  contraband  of  war  to  the  belligerent  powers.  But  it  was 
successfully  shown,  on /Ae  part  of  the  United  S/a^es,  that  neutrals  may  lawfully 
soil  at  home  to  a  bellijjerent  purchaser,  or  carry,  themselves,  to  a  belligerent 
power,  contraband  articles,  subject  to  the  right  of  seizure  in  transitu.  The  right 
has  since  been  explicitly  declared  by  the  judicial  authorities  of  the  country.  The 
right  of  the  neutral  to  transport,  and  of  the  hostile  power  to  seize,  are  conflicting 
rights,  and  neither  power  can  charge  the  other  with  a  criminal  act." 

In  the  case  of  the  Santissiina  Trinidad,  7th  Wheaton,  p.  253,  we  lind  the  follow- 
ing decision  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  :  "  No  neutral  state  ia 
bound  to  prohibit  the  exportation  of  contraband  articles,  and  the  United  State* 
have  not  prohibited  it" 


r 

IF 


11 


INTRODUCTION. 


country  in  a  contest  for  freedom  merits  the  wreath  of  glory,  much  more 
does  he  render  himself  immortal,  who  buckles  himself  to  the  strife  for 
those  who  are  not  of  his  kindred  or  people.  The  Americans  who  were 
engaged  in  this  movement  left  home,  friends,  fortune,  wives,  and  children 
behind  them  —  for  what?  For  toil,  privation,  poverty,  imprisonment, 
exile,  and  death.  They  made  a  sublime  effort  in  behalf  of  humanity 
Living  or  dead,  all  honor  to  their  names  and  memory ! 


!■  ? 


M 


«J  ' 


G( 


be 

of 

bk 

trii 

of 


uch  more 
strife  for 
leho  were 
i  children 
■isonment, 
humanity 


NARRATIVE  OF  ADVENTURES. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Early  TAfe —  Residence  in  Roxbury,  Massachusetts — Removal 
to  Watertown,  New  York  —  Travels  in  Canada  —  Sympathy 
for  the  Canadian  People —  The  Outbreak  in  Loioer  Canada — 
Jiattks  of  St.  Dennis,  St.  Charles,  and  St.  Eustache. 

My  native  place  is  Coventry,  Vermont,  where  I  was  "  ushered 
into  this  breathing  world"  in  the  year  1806.  The  particular 
(lay  and  hour  of  this  somewhat  important  event  to  me,  I  shall 
leave  veiled  in  obscurity,  not  having  the  vanity  to  suppose  that 
it  can  be  of  any  consequence  to  the  thousands  who  I  confidently 
hope  will  honor  this  unpretending  story  with  a  perusal.  My 
fathcfr's  name  was  Simon  Heustis.  He  was  a  farmer,  in  moder- 
ate circumstances  as  to  property,  and  the  father  of  ten  children. 
When  I  was  at  the  age  of  ten  years,  he  removed  to  Westmore- 
land, N.  H.,  a  quiet,  agricultural  town,  near  Keene,  which, 
during  my  imprisonment,  was  rendered  famous  as  the  retreat  of 
Governor  Dorr,  where  he  found  a  safe  refuge,  and  received  the 
warmest  sympathy  and  kindest  attentions  of  the  inhabitants. 
Hero  my  father  and  mother  educated  their  numerous  family  as 
well  as  their  limited  means  would  allow.  They  were  both  mem- 
bers of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  and  inculcated  the  principles 
of  religion  in  their  daily  walk  and  conversation.  For  the 
blessings  of  liberty  and  republican  government  I  was  early 
taught  to  cherish  a  lively  gratitude.  Tyranny  and  oppression, 
of  every  kind,  I  was  led  to  abhor  and  detest. 


f 


10 


CAI'TIVITV     AND     Al)VENTi:HKS     OF 


i  i|ii 


Of  the  events  of  my  boyish  days,  and  the  thousand  httle  inci- 
dents, adventures,  frolics,  and  amusements,  in  which  I  was  an 
eager  participant,  and  which  cast  such  glorious  and  invigorating 
rnya  of  sunlight  on  the  horizon  of  youth,  it  is  not  my  purpose  to 
Kpeak.  They  are  written  on  the  tablet  of  memory,  and  the  rough 
ftorniH  I  have  since  encountered  have  only  served  to  render  the 
inscription  still  more  legible  and  permanent. 

The  story  which  I  have  to  relate,  will  necessarily  be  a  dark 
picture  of  suffering  and  misery.  There  will  be  much  in  it  to 
call  forth  the  sympathetic  tear,  and  there  will  also  be  some  lu- 
<licrons  passages,  that  may  excite  a  smile.  My  experience  and 
observation  during  an  imprisonment  of  six  years,  nearly  five 
of  which  were  passed  in  a  distant  penal  colony  among  a  congre- 
gated mass  of  criminals  of  every  grade,  have  furnished  me  with 
ample  materials  for  a  thrilling  book;  and,  if  I  shall  succeed  in 
working  these  materials  into  proper  shape,  and  in  dressing  my 
thoughts  in  suitable  style,  I  have  no  fears  of  disappointing  those 
who  may  undertake  to  read  my  narrative. 

In  lH'2o  my  father  was  removed  to  a  brighter  and  better 
world.  In  the  spring  of  1820,  being  then  20  years  old,  I  came 
to  Boston  in  quest  of  employment.  That  season  I  worked  for 
Mr.  Joshua  Lewis,  a  farmer,  in  Roxbury,  a  few  miles  out  of 
Boston,  In  the  fall  I  returned  to  Westmoreland,  in  ill  health, 
and  remained  there  during  the  winter. 

The  next  spring  I  again  found  employment  in  Roxbury,  on 
the  farm  of  Mr.  Joseph  D.  Williams,  till  July.  After  that  I  went 
into  the  employ  of  Dea.  Elisha  Wheeler,  who  kept  an  extensive 
grain,  meal,  and  West  India  goods  store,  on  the  Neck,  very  near 
the  Roxbury  line.  I  remained  with  Deacon  Wheeler  nearly 
eight  years,  and  it  affords  me  pleasure  to  speak  of  his  many  vir- 
tuea  and  noble  traits  of  character.  As  a  business  man  he  has 
ever  been  distinguished  for  honesty  and  fairness  in  his  dealings. 
1  invariably  found  him  kind,  pleasant,  and  gentlemanly,  and  shall 
always  remember  with  gratitude  the  friendly  manner  in  which  he 
treated  me  and  others  in  his  service. 

In  March,  1834, 1  wentto  Watertown,  Jefferson  county,  N.  Y., 
where  an  uncle  of  mine,  James  Wood,  was  residing.  Water- 
town  is  the  shire  town  of  Jefferson  county,  and  a  place  of  some 
importance.  It  contains  several  manufactories,  and  is  the  centre 
of  considerable  trade. 

My  uncle  gave  me  employment  one  season  in  the  boating 
business  between  Sackett's  Harbor  and  New  York  city. 

After  that  I  went  into  the  service  of  Messrs.  Clark  and  Burr, 


agen 

aggri 

•ng. 
had 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    IlEUSTiS. 


17 


lie  inci- 
wus  an 
rorating 
rpose  to 
le  rough 
ider  the 

a  dark 

in  it  to 
jome  lu- 
;nce  and 
arly  five 
L  congrc- 
me  with 
cceed  in 
ssing  my 
112  those 

id  better 
1,  I  came 
arked  for 
IS  out  of 
11  health, 

ibury,  on 

lat  I  went 

extensive 

very  near 

er   nearly 

many  vir- 

an  he  has 

dealings. 

and  shall 

which  he 

ity,N.Y.. 
Water- 
e  of  some 
the  centre 

te  boating 

and  Burr, 


morocco-dressers,  at  Watertown,  who  were  doing  an  extensive 
business.  I  remained  with  them  two  years  and  a  half.  During 
that  time  I  had  occasion  to  travel  much  in  Canada,  between 
Toronto  and  Montreal,  purchasing  pelts  and  selling  morocco. 
In  these  travels  I  saw  much  of  the  condition  of  the  Canadian 
people,  and  frequently  listened  to  their  bitter  complaints  against 
the  government  under  which  they  lived.  They  were  harassed 
in  a  thousand  ways,  robbed  of  their  dearest  rights,  plundered  of 
their  substance,  and  all  their  remonstrances  no  more  heeded 
than  the  idle  wind.  They  were  taxed,  most  exorbitantly,  to 
support  a  host  of  proud,  overbearing,  insolent,  and  virtually 
irresponsible  government-officers,  in  whose  appointment  they 
had  no  voice,  and  over  whose  conduct  they  could  exercise  no 
control  or  supervision.  It  would  require  volumes  to  detail  the 
grievances  under  vviiich  the  people  of  Canada  became  restless, 
and  of  which,  as  it  appeared  to  me,  they  very  justly  uttered  their 
emphatic  complaints.* 


*  That  indonuigable,  uncompromising,  and  devoted  champion  of  the 
riglits  of  the  people  of  Canada,  Wm.  Lyok  Mackenzie,  who  was  repeat- 
edly elected  a  member  of  the  local  Parliament  of  Upper  Canada,  where 
he  was  unwearied  in  his  endeavors  to  procure  a  change  in  the  policy  of 
the  British  government ;  who,  by  means  of  his  newspaper,  always  con- 
ducted with  energy  and  ability,  exerted  a  mighty  influence  in  the  cause 
of  liberty  ;  who  was  sent  to  England  by  the  reformers,  on  a  mission 
having  for  its  object  a  peaceful  and  legal  redress  of  the  wrongs  of  Can- 
ada ;  —  this  much  injured  man  has  recently  addressed  a  letter  to  Earl  Grey, 
Secretary  of  State  for  the  Colonies  of  England,  dated  at  Albany,  N.  Y., 
Nov.  22d,  1846,  from  whicU  J  make  the  following  extract :  — 

*'  Although  I  am  at  this  moment  the  only  remaining  political  exile 
who  took  part  in  the  insurrection  of  1837,  in  Upper  Canada,  yet  I  deny, 
as  I  ever  have  done,  that  armed  opposition  was  anything  more  than  a 
resistance  to  unlawful  power,  for  lawful,  just,  and  praiseworthy  objects. 
1  really  wish  we  could  have  borne  a  little  more  of  the  insults,  injuries, 
and  oppressions,  which  I  vainly  endeavored,  as  your  lordship  well  knows, 
to  lessen  or  mitigate,  for  many  years,  and  at  great  personal  and  pecuniary 
risks  and  sacrifices.         *         **         *         *         *         *         *         * 

"  My  lord,  I  gave  you  and  your  colleagues  a  hundred  warnings  of  the 
precipice  on  which  you  stood.  I  invited  you  to  consider  whether  you 
could  keep  colonies,  of  immense  extent,  in  view  of  the  United  States,  on 
the  principle  of  continually  sacrificing  the  interests  of  the  people  to 
those  of  a  vile  faction.  I  laid  on  your  table  the  memorials  of  a  majority 
of  the  whole  people  of  Upper  Canada.  I  appeared  in  England  as  the 
agent  of  the  various  denominations  of  professing  Christians  who  were 
aggrieved  by  your  infatuated  policy  of  exclusively  establishing,  endow- 
ing, organizing,  and  pensioning  the  clergy  uf  the  Episcopal  Church.  I 
had  many  long  conversations  with  successive. ministers  of  state;    my 


f. 


18 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


11 


Who  can  wonder,  that  what  I  saw  and  heard  excited  in  my 
bosom  a  strong  fefiling  of  sympathy  for  the  Canidian  people? 
They  were  tired  of  British  rule,  and  would  fain  throw  off  the 
yoke  that  was  on  their  necks,  as  our  fathers  had  done  when  that 
yoke  oppressed  them.  I  should  have  been  recreant  to  the  prin- 
ciples of  liberty  in  which  I  had  been  nurtured,  had  I  not  deeply 
sympathized  with  a  people  thus  struggling  to  be  free. 

In  the  spring  of  1837  I  went  into  business  with  my  cousin, 
A.  R.  Skinner,  at  Watertown.  We  traded  in  West  India  goods 
and  groceries,  and  also  carried  on  butchering. 

The  public  mind,  in  that  vicinity,  and  along  the  whole  line 
of  the  frontier,  was  then  considerably  awakened  in  regard  to 
Canadian  affairs.  The  clouds  which  precede  the  storm  were 
already,  in  dark  and  threatening  aspect,  gathering  in  the  horizon. 
It  was  evident  that  a  crisis  was  approaching,  which  might  decide 
the  future  destiny,  for  weal  or  woe,  of  the  Canadian  people. 
During  the  summer  and  autumn  of  1837  my  business  led  me 
frequently  into  Upper  Canada,  and  I  found  that  the  people  were 
growing  more  and  more  discontented  and  manifested  a  strong 
desire  to  be  relieved  from  British  thraldom. 

In  Lower  Canada  the  people,  incensed  at  the  plundering  of 
their  treasury,  and  other  high-handed  acts  of  the  home  govern- 
ment, congregated  in  immense  assemblages,  recounted  their 
grievances,  and  "  pledged  their  lives,  their  fortunes,  and  their 
sacred  honor,"  in  the  defence  of  their  inalienable  rights.  These 
meetings  were  addressed  by  M.  Papineau,  who  had  been  for 
several  years  Speaker  of  the  Lower  House  of  the  Legislature, 
and  whose  talents  and  genius,  no  less  than  his  devotion  to  their 
cause,  had  made  him  the  acknowledged  leader  of  the  people  in 
Lower  Canada.  His  presence  was  everywhere  hailed  with  de- 
light by  the  assembled  thousands.  The  reformers  had  used  no 
violence,  and  the  government  could  charge  them  with  no  unlaw- 
ful act.  Nevertheless,  it  was  clearly  seen  that  they  were  gaining 
strength  by  the  agitation,  and  that,  if  it  was  long  continued,  the 


fai 
ed. 


arguments  and  memorials  are  on  record  in  the  colonial  department. 
Afler  an  eighteen  months'  residence  in  London  I  returned  to  Canada : 
a  new  legislature  was  chosen  ;  it  embodied,  through  the  labors  of  a 
special  committee,  over  which  I  presided,  the  various  grievances  and 
wrongs  which  forty  years  of  dissension  and  misrule  had  engendered  ;  it 
ordered  a  schedule  of  them  to  be  printed  i.v  a  volume  of  570  octavo 
PAGES,  and  circulated  by  thousands  throughout  the  colony." 


ei 


D 

ble 
rev 

sev 
exa 
iiiti 

att; 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL     D,     HEUSTIS. 


19 


ed  in  my 
I  people? 
vv  off  the 
when  that 
)  the  prin- 
lot  deeply 

ny  cousin, 
idia  goods 

ivholc  line 
regard  to 
orm  were 
le  horizon, 
ight  decide 
in  people. 
ess  led  me 
eople  were 
1  a  strong 

ndering  of 
ne  govern- 
mted  their 
and  their 
jts.  These 
d  been  for 
legislature, 
ion  to  their 
B  people  in 
id  with  de- 
ad used  no 
J  no  unlaw- 
ere  gaining 
tinned,  the 


department, 
i  to  Canada : 
»  labors  of  a 
ievances  and 
gendered  j  it 

570   OCTAVO 


I 


result  would  be  disastrous  to  British  rule  in  Canada.  It  was 
therefore  the  cunning  policy  of  the  government  to  hasten  the 
crisis,  by  provoking  a  premature  outbreak,  and  then  taking  ad- 
vantage of  the  unorganized  and  undisciplined  condition  of  the 
people,  to  crush  them  and  their  cause,  at  once,  by  "  the  armed 
heel  of  military  preparation."  The  Executive  Council  accord- 
ingly issued  warrants  for  high  treason,  against  some  of  the  prom- 
inent friends  of  the  popular  movement,  and  a  detachment  of 
cavalry,  from  Montreal,  proceeded  to  St.  Johns,  and  arrested 
P.  P.  Desmarais  and  Dr.  Joseph  Davignon,  two  worthy  and  in- 
fluential citizens.  The  prisoners,  heavily  ironed,  were  dragged, 
by  a  circuitous  route,  through  one  of  the  most  populous  and 
patriotic  districts,  on  the  banks  of  the  River  Chambly.  The  sight 
of  these  devoted  men,  thus  torn  from  their  homes  to  be  immured 
in  prison,  and  perhaps  to  suffer  death  on  an  ignominious  scaffold, 
for  having  dared  to  protest  against  the  despotic  proceedings  of  a 
tyrannical  government,  aroused  the  people,  and  it  was  resolved 
to  make  a  rescue.  Accordingly,  the  farmers  of  the  parish  of 
Longueiel  armed  themselves  and  liberated  their  friends,  the 
affrighted  cavalry  being  glad  to  escape  with  their  lives.  On 
their  arrival  at  Montreal,  they  reported  that  the  whole  district 
through  which  they  had  passed  was  in  arms. 

This  was  joyful  news  for  the  government.  They  wanted  some 
excuse  for  wreaking  their  bloody  vengeance  on  the  patriots  who 
had  so  boldly  opposed  their  misrule.  **  The  long-desired  blow 
is  at  last  struck,"  said  one  of  the  tory  papers.  "  Blood  has  at 
last  been  shed  by  the  rebels,  who  now  stand  unmasked,  and 
fairly  subject  to  the  worst  penalties  of  the  laws  they  have  insult- 
ed.    No  British  subject  could  desire  better  things." 

Arrests  now  became  the  order  of  the  day.  The  Montreal  jails 
were  crowded  with  the  prisoners.  The  reign  of  terror  had 
coinmenced.  Lieutenant-colonel  Wetherall  was  immediately  sent 
into  the  disaffected  district,  with  a  large  detachment  of  cavalry. 
The  whole  country  presented  a  scene  of  distress.  The  houses 
were  deserted,  the  women  and  children  having  fled. 

The  horrid  butcheries  and  massacres  that  followed  at  St. 
Dennis,  St.  Charles,  and  St.  Eustache,  will  ever  form  a  memora- 
ble leaf  in  the  history  of  British  cruelty.  The  particulars  are 
revolting  to  the  feelings  of  humanity.  The  patriots,  at  these 
several  villages,  defended  their  homes  and  firesides  with  most 
exalted  bravery.  But  they  were  poorly  armed,  short  of  ammu- 
nition, undisciplined,  and  almost  entirely  unprepared  for  the 
attack. 


f 


ui\ 


m 


illt.; 


20 


CAPTIVITY     AND     AUVRNTURES     OF 


The  battle  of  St.  Dennis  took  pincc  on  the  23d  of  November, 
1837.  A  furcc  of  800  men,  with  four  pieces  of  cannon  and  a 
howitzer,  was  despatched  from  Montreal  to  attack  and  pillage 
St.  Dennis  and  St.  Charles,  where  several  of  the  leading  reform- 
ers were  residing.  It  was  not  anticipated  that  such  an  armed 
force  would  be  sent  to  arrest  half  a  dozen  civilians,  and  no  prep- 
aration had  been  made  to  ojjpose  such  a  body.  There  were  not 
more  than  thirty  men  at  St.  Dennis,  previous  to  the  arrival  of  the 
troops,  and  they  were  collected  to  prevent  the  seizure  of  Dr. 
Wolfred  Nelson,  by  constables.  When  it  was  known  that  the 
troops  were  coming,  the  tocsin  was  sounded.  About  300  men, 
armed  with  fowling  guns  and  pitchforks,  rallied  around  the  gal- 
lant Dr.  Nelson,  and,  after  an  engagement  of  six  hours  and  a 
half,  repulsed  the  British  regulars  and  drove  them  back,  with  a 
loss  of  fifty  men  and  one  piece  of  cannon.  The  loss  of  the 
patriots  was  quite  severe.  The  fatal  discharge  of  the  howitzer 
into  a  large  building,  which  was  crowded  with  men,  occasioned 
a  melancholy  destruction  of  life.  About  one  hundred  fell  in  the 
action ;  yet  the  survivors  and  their  friends  were  encouraged  by 
the  favorable  termination  of  the  fight,  and  were  ready  to  meet 
the  foe  again  at  St.  Charles. 

The  battle  of  St.  Charles  was  fought  on  the  25th  of  Novem- 
ber. The  government  force,  700  strong,  of  regulars,  infantry, 
and  cavalry,  were  met  by  a  considerable  body  of  honest  farmers, 
poorly  armed,  and  ignorant  of  war.  Col.  Wetherall  says :  "  On 
arriving  at  two  hundred  and  fifty  yards  from  the  rebel  works,  I 
took  up  a  position ;  they  opened  a  heavy  fire,  which  was  return 
ed.  I  then  advanced  to  another  position,  one  hundred  yards 
from  the  works ;  but  finding  the  defenders  obstinate,  I  stormed 
and  carried  them,  burning  every  building  within  the  stockade, 
except  that  of  the  honorable  Mr.  Debartzch.  The  affair  occu- 
pied about  an  hour.  The  slaughter  on  the  side  of  the  rebels  was 
great ;  only  sixteen  prisoners  were  then  made.  I  have  counted 
fifty-six  bodies,  and  many  more  were  killed  in  the  buildings,  and 
their  bodies  burnt."  Other  accounts  state  that  the  farmers 
fought  bravely,  and  that  the  butchery  was  dreadful.  Upwards 
of  one  hundred  were  in  a  barn,  full  of  hay  and  straw,  which  was 
set  fire  to,  and  they  were  burned  alive,  or  smothered  to  death. 
Nearly  one  hundred  men  were  driven  into  the  river,  and  there 
perished.  The  wounded  were  inhumanly  bayoneted.  The 
houses  were  then  fired  by  the  soldiery,  and  the  village  entirely 
destroyed.  The  horrors  of  this  scene  of  carnage  and  death  it 
would  be  impossible  to  describe. 


<  Al'TAIN     DANIKL     I>.    IIinsTIS. 


31 


^lovember, 
non  and  a 
md  pillage 
ng  reform- 
an  armed 
id  no  prep- 
e  were  not 
rival  of  the 
lire  of  Dr. 
n  that  the 
i  300  men, 
nd  the  gal- 
)urs  and  a 
ick,  with  a 
loss  of  the 
le  howitzer 
occasioned 
1  fell  in  the 
ouraged  by 
idy  to  meet 

of  Novem- 
infantry, 
ist  farmers, 
laya:  "On 
si  works,  I 
as  return 
[red   yards 
I  stormed 
stockade, 
iffair  occu- 
rebels  was 
'e  counted 
Idings,  and 
;e   farmers 
Upwards 
Iwhich  was 
to  death, 
and  there 
led.      The 
[e  entirely 
death  it 


Oil  thn  31)th  of  November,  the  victoriotui  army,  having 
cotnplcted  their  work  of  slaughter  in  the  district  they  had  visit- 
ed, and  destroyed  and  pillaged  the  property  of  the  patriots  on 
the  line  of  their  march,  and  having  garrisoned  the  several  vil- 
lages where  the  patriotic  spirit  was  known  to  be  most  rife,  re- 
turned in  triumph  to  Montreal,  exhibiting  the  trophies  they  had 
won,  and  entering  the  city  with  as  much  pomp  and  parade  as 
if  they  had  conquered  a  hostile  nation. 

The  next  great  event  in  this  sanguinary  struggle  was  the  battle 
of  St.  Eustache.  This  took  place  on  the  14th  of  December. 
The  village  is  twenty-one  miles  north  of  Montreal,  on  the  banks 
of  the  Ottawa  River,  in  a  most  lovely  and  picturesque  rural  settle- 
ment. The  people,  enthusiastically  devoted  to  the  cause  of  their 
country's  independence,  determined  not  to  permit  the  arrest 
of  their  proscribed  leaders,  Dr.  Jean  Oliver  Chenier,  and  the 
county  representatives,  Messrs.  Girouard  and  Scott,  for  each 
of  whom  a  reward  of  .£500  had  been  offered  by  the  government. 
The  village  was  attacked  by  Sir  John  Colborne,  with  200  cav- 
alry, a  large  train  of  artillery,  several  regiments  of  European 
soldiers  and  Canadian  loyalists,  in  all  amounting  to  2,250  strong 
The  patriots  numbered  some  300  men,  with  strong  and  resolute 
hearts,  but,  like  the  people  of  St.  Dennis  and  St.  Charles,  poorly 
armed,  with  very  little  ammunition,  and  nothing  to  rely  upon  but 
the  most  undaunted  bravery.  As  the  enemy  advanced  upon  the 
village,  the  heroic  Chenier  addressed  his  comrades,  telling  them 
that  they  could  escape,  if  they  wished,  by  a  road  not  yet  occu- 
pied by  the  British;  but  never  would  he  leave  his  home,  and 
suffer  defenceless  women  and  children  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  a 
merciless  enemy,  without  striking  a  blow  for  their  protection  and 
defence.  He  concluded  by  saying  that  those  who  were  prepared 
to  sell  their  lives  at  the  dearest  possible  rate  could  remain  with 
him.  Unanimously,  the  whole  people  cried  out,  *'  Liberty  or 
Death  ;  we  will  never  desert  our  homes  and  families." 

The  plan  of  defence  was  hastily  arranged.  They  took  pos- 
session of  several  buildings,  including  the  church,  which  was 
occupied  by  Dr.  Chenier  and  sixty  others.  The  enemy  sur- 
rounded the  village  and  cut  off  all  retreat.  The  clergyman's 
house  was  first  burnt,  and  the  people  who  retreated  to  the  cel- 
lars of  the  convent  were  either  burnt  or  stifled  to  death.  The 
soldiers  next  surrounded  the  church,  set  it  on  fire,  and  left  the 
wounded  to  perish  in  the  flames ;  those  who  leaped  from  the 
windows  were  met  by  volleys  of  musketry.  Dr.  Chenier  and  a 
few   brave  men  jumped  through  a  window  into  the  graveyard, 


32 


CAPTIVITV     AND     ADVKNTURKS     OF 


where  they  foii«jIU  with  all  the  dcHpcration  of  a  forlorn  hope.  A 
boll  Noon  brought  their  lender  down,  hut  he  rallied  his  sinking 
btrength,  rose  and  discharged  his  gun  at  the  enemy  ;  twice  again 
ho  was  brought  to  the  ground,  and  twice  he  rose  to  the  attack. 
The  fourth  time  iik  thll  to  iuhe  no  more  !  Chenier's  fall 
was  the  i>ignul  for  an  indiscriminate  slaughter  of  the  remainder 
of  his  brave  band.  **  No  Qiiauter  "  was  the  cry,  and,  with  few 
exceptions,  all  were  massacred.  Some  few  made  for  the  ice,  in 
the  hope  of  gaining  the  opposite  woods.  One  by  one  they  were 
picked  off  by  the  ninrksmen  posted  at  certain  distances,  and  they 
perished  ami<l  the  bleak  wintry  snows  of  Canada. 

After  fighting  four  and  a  half  hours,  Sir  John  obtained  com- 
plete possession  of  the  village,  which  was  then  pillaged  and 
committed  to  flames,  n  very  offensive  smell  arising  from  the 
burning  bodies.  The  brutal  soldiery  were  let  loose,  to  violate 
the  women,  to  plunder  and  destroy  property,  and  to  glut  their 
fiendish  propensities  in  the  commission  of  nameless  outrages. 
Dr.  Chenier's  mutilated  body  was  exposed,  with  the  clothing 
stripped  from  his  yet  warm  limbs,  the  body  cut  into  quarters, 
and  his  heart  torn  out  and  exhibited  to  the  gaze  of  the  barbarous 
soldier:^.  His  beautiful  and  accomplished  wife  implored  in  vain 
for  the  remains  of  her  husband,  that  she  might  give  them  a  de- 
cent burial.  No  disposition  was  made  of  the  mangled  body  until 
the  stench  became  intolerable,  and  then  the  friends  were  not 
allowed  to  deposit  it  in  the  cemetery.  After  having  been  in- 
crred  a  while,  the  mourning  widow  had  it  taken  up,  and  for  fear 
of  further  violence  secreted  it  in  a  garret,  till  she,  with  her  own 
hands,  could  cleanse  it,  sew  it  together,  and  bury  it  in  a  secret 
place;  where,  says  his  friend  and  schoolmate.  Dr.  Theller,  when 
Canada  shall  be  free,  a  monument  will  be  erected  to  his  memory; 
though  no  storied  urn  can  so  well  tell  his  worth  as  the  inscrip- 
tion already  written  upon  the  hearts  of  freedom's  friends. 

On  the  10th  of  December  Sir  John  Colborne  returned  to 
Montreal,  and  rode  through  the  city  to  receive  the  applause  that 
greeted  the  return  of  such  a  conqueror.  The  following  day  the 
greater  part  of  his  force  reached  the  city,  escorting  one  hundred 
and  five  prisoners. 

Accounts  of  these  massacres  of  patriotic  republicans  by  the 
troops  of  Queen  Victoria  soon  flew  to  the  United  States,  and 
were  received  with  mingled  feelings  of  indignation  and  horror. 
Public  meetings  were  immediately  held  in  many  of  the  towns 
and  cities  of  the  States  bordering  on  the  Canadas,  at  wnich  the 
highest  enthusiasm  was  manifested  in  fivor  of  the  patriot  cause; 


AOVBNTURBS     OP     CAPTAIN     IIKUSTIS. 


23 


resolutions  of  cordial  sympathy,  pledging  nid  and  support,  wero 
adopted;  money,  provisions,  amniuiiition,  and  clothing  wero 
collected,  and  committees  appointed  to  distribute  these  supplies 
to  the  best  advantage.  In  short,  i''f^  popular  feeling  was  most 
ardently  enlisted  in  behalf  of  an  attempt  so  bravely,  though  un- 
successfully made,  to  obtain  the  boon  of  liberty. 

I  have  given  the  foregoing  very  brief  sketch  of  the  Lower 
Canada  rebellion,  as  it  is  sometimes  termed,  because  my  nar- 
rative would  be  incomplete  without  a  glance  at  this  dark  portion 
of  Canadian  history,  and  also  because  the  events  alluded  to  made 
a  deep  and  abiding  impression  on  my  own  mind,  and  were  among 
the  causes  which  induced  mc  to  embark  in  the  attempt  to  liber- 
ate the  people  of  Canada  from  the  thraldom  of  British  tyranny. 
My  account,  however,  is  necessarily  very  meagre,  and  those  who 
desire  to  know  more  of  the  origin  and  history  of  that  movement, 
will  do  well  to  consult  other  authors. 

Doctor  E.  A.  Theller,  a  fearless  volunteer  in  the  patriot  cause, 
was  taken  prisoner  in  Upper  Canada,  in  January,  1839,  tried 
for  high  treason  and  sentenced  to  death,  but  afterwards  respited 
and  sent  to  the  fortress  at  Quebec,  from  whence  he  effected  a 
most  wonderful  escape.  Subsequently  he  published  a  highly 
interesting  work,  in  two  volumes,  entitled  "  Canada  in  1837-8," 
which,  while  it  contains  u  faithful  history  of  the  Canadian  revolt, 
gives  an  account  of  the  author's  own  personal  adventures,  im- 
parting to  the  story  all  the  interest  of  a  thrilling  romance.  I 
most  cordially  conmsend  this  work  to  the  attention  of  all  who 
have  not  read  it. 


24 


CHAPTER  II. 

Attempted  Revolution  in  Upper  Canada  —  Escape  of  the  Leaders 
to  the  United  States —  Occupation  of  Navy  Island — Destruc- 
tion of  the  Caroline  —  Enlistment  of  the  Author,  and  Journey 
to  Buffalo  —  Evacuation  of  Navy  Island —  The  Watertown 
Arsenal  Guns  —  Hickory  Island —  General  Van  Rensselaer. 

In  the  Province  of  Upper  Canada  the  reformers  were  not 
idle  during  the  enactment  of  the  scenes  described  in  the  pre- 
ceding chapter.  They  had  arrived  at  the  conclusion  that  longer 
submission  to  the  arbitrary  mandates  of  the  British  crown,  and 
its  despotic  minions  who  exercised  authority  in  the  Provinces, 
would  result  in  a  loss,  to  them  and  their  children,  of  all  the 
rights  which  men  hold  dear.  They  therefore  determined  —  after 
having  exhausted,  in  vain,  all  the  peaceful  means  within  their 
control,  to  obtain  redress  —  to  make  an  effort  to  revolutionize 
the  government  of  that  Province.  A  day  had  been  agreed  upon 
for  assembling  in  the  vicinity  of  Toronto,  the  seat  of  government 
of  Upper  Canada,  a  volunteer  force  of  armed  citizens,  adequate 
to  take  possession  of  that  city,  occupy  the  public  buildings,  and 
organize  a  new  government.  By  a  misunderstanding  in  relation 
to  the  time  for  striking  the  decisive  blow,  the  attempt  was  ren- 
dered unsuccessful.  The  Lieutenant-Governor  of  the  Province, 
Sir  Francis  Bond  Head,  being  seasonably  apprised  of  the  in- 
tended attack,  was  enabled  to  rally  a  force  sufficient  to  prevent 
it,  inasmuch  as  a  large  portion  of  the  patriots,  owing  to  the 
mistake  in  regard  to  the  time,  did  not  arrive  in  season  to  co- 
operate with  their  friends.  Those  who  did  assemble  were  dis- 
couraged at  not  finding  themselves  supported,  as  they  had  expected 
to  be,  by  thousands  of  congenial  spirits,  and,  being  tired  out  by  a 
long  and  tedious  march  over  bad  roads,  they  began  to  falter  in 
their  purpose.  Colonel  Van  Egmond,  a  man  of  great  influence 
and  military  experience,  who,  in  his  young  days,  had  served  as 
aid-de-camp  to  Napoleon,  had  been  selected  to  take  the  command 
of  the  patriots.  He  had  not  arrived.  There  being  no  one  to 
direct  operations,  Mr.  Mackenzie,  in  conjunction  with  Captain 
Anthony  Anderson,  a  man  of  daring  bravery,  made  such  pre- 
liminary arrangements  as  the  emergency  demanded.     After  some 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.    UEUSTIS. 


35 


''  the  Leaders 
I — Destruc- 
ancl  Journey 
3  Watertoiun 
Rensselaer. 

sns  were  not 
i  in  the  pre- 
1  that  longer 
crown,  and 
B  Provinces, 
1,  of  all  the 
lined  —  after 
within  their 
revolutionize 
agreed  upon 
'government 
ns,  adequate 
Liildings,  and 
g  in  relation 
rpt  was  ren- 
he  Province, 
d  of  the  in- 
it  to  prevent 
wing  to  the 
Jason  to  co- 
ble were  dis- 
tiad  expected 
ired  out  by  a 

to  falter  in 
:at  influence 
id  served  as 
iie  command 
J  no  one  to 
ivith  Captain 
le  such  pre- 

After  some 


skirmishes,  in  which  the  patriots  were  successful,  Sir  Francis 
received  strong  reinforcements.  He  then  marched  out  of  the 
city  with  his  army,  in  three  divisions,  the  main  one  taking  the 
direct  road  toward  the  patriots,  and  the  other  two  going  a  mile 
to  the  right  and  lefl,  with  the  intention  of  surrounding  the  patriot 
encampment.  A  spirited  fight  took  place  between  the  main  body 
of  the  loyalists  and  the  patriots.  The  former  commenced  the 
battle  with  a  heavy  lire  of  grape  and  canister  from  their  park  of 
artillery,  followed  by  volleys  of  musketry,  which  the  patriots, 
with  their  rifles,  returned  with  deadly  effect.  Colonel  Van 
Egmond  had  then  arrived,  and  the  patriots  had  received  small 
reinforcements.  They  returned  each  volley  with  spirit  until  a 
report  spread  among  them  that  they  were  surrounded.  They 
were  then  compelled  to  retreat,  leaving  their  killed  and  wounded 
on  the  field. 

Afler  the  retreat,  Mackenzie,  Fletcher,  Van  Egmond,  and 
others,  held  a  consultation,  and  concluded  that  it  would  be  use- 
less, under  the  existing  circumstances,  to  collect  their  scattered 
forces.  Many  of  the  patriots  then  returned  to  their  homes,  while 
others  kept  together,  for  the  purpose  of  making  their  way  into 
other  districts,  where  they  expected  to  find  the  people  in  arms. 
Some  of  the  leaders  escaped  to  the  United  States. 

Thousands  of  men  from  the  distant  townships,  who  had  been 
notified  that  the  attack  on  Toronto  would  take  place  a  few  days 
after  the  time  of  the  actual  outbreak,  were  on  the  road  to  join 
the  patriot  standard ;  but  when  they  heard  of  the  disastrous  re- 
sult of  the  scheme,  and  were  met  by  the  government  troops,  they 
made  a  virtue  of  necessity,  and  pretended  they  had  come  to  aid 
in  quelling  the  insurrection.  They  were  enrolled  as  volunteers, 
and  compelled  to  serve  as  such,  much  against  their  inclinations. 

If  the  plans  and  advice  of  Mr.  Mackenzie  had  been  adopted 
in  this  critical  affair,  there  is  not  the  least  doubt  that  the  rev- 
olution would  have  been  consummated  with  very  little  sacrifice 
of  life  or  property.  After  the  arrangements  had  been  completed, 
and  notice  of  the  time  of  the  revolt  sent  into  the  distant  town- 
ships, some  of  the  leaders  at  Toronto,  in  the  absence  of  Mr 
Mackenzie,  sent  out  another  notice,  calling  upon  their  friends  to 
rally  several  days  earlier  than  the  original  plan  contemplated. 
As  it  was  impossible  for  the  last  notice  to  reach  the  distant 
places  in  season,  great  confusion  was  the  consequence.  Mr. 
Mackenzie,  on  learning  how  matters  stood,  endeavored  to  coun- 
termand the  mistaken  notice,  but  it  was  too  late ;  the  men  were 
on  their  way ;  and  if  they  were  ordered  back  the  scheme  would 
2 


ff 


2G 


CAPTIVJTY     AND     ADVKXTUKr.S     OF 


£|({'ii 

m 


I 

1 

1 


\i 


be  revealed  to  the  government,  and  the  plan  wonld  thus  be  frus- 
trated. Mr.  Mackenzie  then  tried  to  turn  the.se  untoward  cir- 
cumstances to  advantage.  lie  urged  an  immediate  attempt  to 
take  Toronto,  with  the  small  force  then  assembled,  as  delay 
would  enable  the  Lieutenant-Governor  to  mature  his  plans  of 
defence,  and  to  obtain  stronfj  reinforcements.  But  there  was 
division  in  the  patriot  councils,  and  the  golden  moment  was 
suffered  to  pass  unimproved.  If  the  blow  had  been  promptly 
struck,  aided  as  it  would  have  been  by  a  large  majority  of  the 
citizens,  such  was  the  weakness  and  terror  of  the  loyalists  that 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  an  easy  victory  would  have  crown- 
ed the  effort. 

The  tavern  of  Mr.  Montgomery,  three  miles  from  Toronto, 
was  committed  to  flames  by  order  of  Sir  Francis,  on  a  pretence 
that  it  had  been  the  head-quarters  of  the  rebels.  The  valuable 
property  of  Mr.  Mackenzie,  in  the  city,  and  the  house,  barn,  and 
outhouses  of  Mr.  Gibson,  >vere  also  consigned  to  the  devouring 
element,  after  the  loyal  volunteers  had  appropriated  to  their  own 
use  such  articles  as  they  coveted. 

A  party  that  had  been  sent  out  to  scour  the  country  returned 
on  the  succeeding  day,  with  a  number  of  prisoners,  among  whom 
was  Colonel  Van  Egmond.  These  unfortunate  men  were  con- 
fined in  damp  and  unwholesome  cells,  where  hunger  and  cold 
engendered  disease,  of  which  the  gallant  and  noble  Colonel  Van 
Egmond  and  several  others  died. 

Colonel  Samuel  Lount  and  Captain  Peter  Matthews  were 
cnplured,  taken  to  Toronto,  tried,  adjudged  guilty,  and  condemn- 
ed to  death.  The  popular  feeling  was  strong  in  their  favor,  and 
the  governor  was  besieged  with  petitions  from  all  quarters,  pray- 
ing that  their  lives  might  be  spared.  Over  30,000  persons  thus 
entreated  for  executive  clemency,  but  in  vain.  Previous  to  their 
execution,  which  took  place  on  the  12th  of  April,  1838,  Sir 
George  Arthur  liad  succeeded  Sir  Francis  B.  Head,  as  Lieuten- 
ant-Governor of  Upper  Canada.  The  change,  however,  was  but 
a  removal  of  one  tyrant,  to  fill  his  place  with  another,  still  more 
bloodthirsty,  I  shall  speak  of  the  barbarous  execution  in  a 
succeeding  chapter. 

The  city  was  then  garrisoned,  and  the  loyalist  militia  quartered 
in  every  disaffected  district.  The  families  of  those  engaged  in 
the  insurrection  were  treated  with  the  most  brutal  ferocity. 

Wm.  L.  Mackenzie  and  David  Gibson,  two  of  the  most  prom- 
inent leaders  of  the  reformers  in  and  out  of  Parliament,  crossed 
the  lake  to  Buffalo,  where  they  were  received  with  open  arms^ 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.    IIEUSTIS. 


27 


US  be  frus* 
toward  cir- 
attempt  to 
I,  as  delay 
is  plans  of 
there  was 
oment  was 
[i  promptly 
rity  of  the 
yalists  that 
ave  crowii- 

1  Toronto, 
a  pretence 

le  valuable 

,  barn,  and 
devouring 

►  their  own 

y  returned 

long  whom 

were  con- 

and  cold 

^lonel  Van 

lews  were 

condemn- 

favor,  and 

tera,  pray- 

rsons  thus 

us  to  their 

1838,  Sir 

s  Lieuten- 

',  was  but 

still  more 

tion    in    a 

quartered 
ngaged  in 
city. 

lost  prom- 
It,  crossed 
:>en  arms^ 


and  welcomed  to  the  "  land  of  the  free,  and  the  home  of  th« 
brave."  A  number  of  the  most  respectable  citizens  volunteered 
to  guard  the  hotel  where  tiiey  stopped,  lest  some  prowling  to- 
ries  or  British  spies,  incited  by  the  heavy  reward  offered  by 
Governor  Head,  should  make  an  attempt  to  kidnap  them. 
The  next  day  Mackenzie  addressed  the  people  in  relation  to 
the  wrongs  of  Canada,  giving  an  account  of  the  defeat  of  the 
patriots,  and  its  consequences. 

Volunteers  at  once  enrolled  their  names  for  the  patriot 
service.  Their  head-quarters  was  the  Eagle  tavern,  from 
which  floated  the  Canadian  banner.  Arms,  clothing,  provisions, 
and  munitions  of  war,  were  freely  contributed. 

The  Canadian  refugees  were  desirous  of  raising  their  banner 
on  British  soil,  where  they  could  enrol  and  discipline  the  vol- 
unteers that  might  join  them.  Mackenzie,  with  only  twenty- 
five  others,  embarked  in  a  small  boat,  and  took  possession  of 
Navy  Island,  in  the  river  immediately  above  Niagara  Falls. 
This  island  belongs  to  Great  Britain,  is  about  a  mile  and  a  half 
long,  a  mile  in  breadth,  and  is  described  by  Sir  F.  B.  Head  as 
"  a  lovely  wooded  spot."  It  is  within  half  a  mile  of  the  Canadian 
shore,  and  well  adapted  for  the  purpose  intended. 

Here  they  were  soon  joined  by  volunteers  to  the  number  of 
GOO;  Rensselaer  Van  Rensselaer,  of  Albany,  was  appointed 
commander,  and  the  camp  exhibited  a  scene  of  active  prepara- 
tion for  warlike  movements.  Many  of  the  oppressed  Canadians 
resolved  to  second  and  support  this  bold  movement,  and,  at  the 
most  imminent  risk,  lefl  their  homes  and  crossed  the  lake  in 
open  boats,  at  a  very  inclement  season  of  the  year,  to  share  the 
fortunes  of  their  countrymen  and  friends. 

The  tories  at  Toronto  were  frightened  half  to  death  when  the 
news  of  the  occupation  of  Navy  Island  reached  that  city.  All 
the  military  force  they  could  muster,  amounting  to  nearly  5000 
men,  was  immediately  ordered  to  take  a  position  at  Chippewa, 
opposite  the  island,  to  prevent  the  patriots  from  landing. 

About  this  time  General  Donald  McLeod  and  Captain  Silas 
Fletcher,  prominent  patriots,  fled  from  Canada,  hotly  pursued, 
and  after  some  **  hair-breadth  escapes "  crossed  the  St.  Law- 
rence in  a  small  boat,  and  made  their  way  to  Watertown.  Their 
exit  from  Canada  was  so  sudden  that  they  did  not  take  with 
them  even  complete  suits  of  clothes.  They  met  with  the  most 
cordial  and  substantial  sympathy  from  the  people  of  Watertown, 
who  listened  with  eager  attention  to  their  exciting  story,  and,  as 
they  spoke  of  the  outrages  committed  on  the  unfortunate  patriots 


28 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES    OF 


every  heart  throbbed  with  indignation.  They  afterwards  pro- 
ceeded to  Rochester,  where  they  found  Doctor  Rolph,  another 
prominent  exile  from  the  land  of  despotism. 

"While  General  McLeod  and  Captain  Fletcher  were  at  Water- 
town  the  news  of  the  destruction  of  the  steamboat  Caroline 
reached  town.  The  excitement  created  by  this  daring  outrage, 
as  may  well  be  conceived,  was  intense.  It  was  a  national  insult, 
of  the  grossest  kind.  It  comprehended  an  armed  invasion  of  our 
territory,  the  murder  of  peaceful  American  citizens,  and  the 
wanton  destruction  of  an  American  vessel.  I  need  not  give  the 
particulars  of  that  tragic  affair.  They  are  known  the  wide  world 
over.  Mr.  Mackenzie  says:  "The  Caroline  sailed  under  the 
American  flag,  which  the  assailants  took  to  Toronto  and  display- 
ed at  annual  festivals  in  honor  of  this  outrage.  She  was  set  in  a 
blaze,  cut  adrift,  and  sent  over  the  Falls  of  Niagara.  We  wit- 
nessed the  dreadful  scene  from  Navy  Island.  The  thrilling  cry 
ran  around  that  there  were  living  souls  on  board ;  and  as  the 
vessel,  wrapt  in  vivid  flame,  which  disclosed  her  doom  as  it  shone 
brightly  on  the  water,  was  hurrying  down  the  resistless  rapids  to 
the  tremendous  cataract,  thn  thunder  of  which,  more  awfully  dis- 
tinct in  the  midnight  stillness,  horrified  every  mind  with  the 
presence  of  their  inevitable  fate,  numbers  caught,  in  fancy,  the 
wails  of  dying  men,  hopelessly  perishing  by  the  double  horrors 
of  a  fate  which  nothing  could  avert ;  and  we  watched  with  ago- 
nized attention  the  flaming  mass,  till  it  was  hurried  over  the 
falls  to  be  crushed  in  everlasting  darkness  in  the  unfathomed 
tomb  of  waters  below."  The  American  people  will  never  rest 
satisfied  until  some  more  substantial  atonement  has  been  made 
by  the  British  government  for  this  flagrant  act  of  aggression. 
Our  government  has  disgraced  itself  by  accepting  the  flimsy 
apology  which,  at  the  eleventh  hour,  was  offered  us. 

On  the  10th  of  January,  1838, 1  gave  up  business  and  devoted 
myself  to  the  cause  of  Canadian  liberty.  I  started  immediately 
for  Navy  Island,  and  was  accompanied  by  several  brave  men 
who  had  the  same  object  in  view.  I  carried  with  me  four  rifles 
and  the  same  number  of  muskets,  which  had  been  presented  to 
me  by  friends  in  Watertown.  I  was  also  well  supplied  with 
ammunition.  Those  who  accompanied  me  also  had  good  and 
trusty  rifles,  and  other  needful  equipments.  We  travelled  by 
stage  to  Rochester,  a  distance  of  120  miles.  There  I  met  Gen- 
eral McLeod,  Captain  Fletcher,  and  Doctor  Rolph.  They  en- 
trusted to  my  care  three  pieces  of  cannon,  to  convey  to  their 
friends  on   Navy  Island.     We  then   proceeded  by  railroad  to 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.     HEUSTtS. 


29 


ards  pro- 
1,  another 

at  Water- 
Caroline 
r  outrage, 
lal  insult, 
on  of  our 
and  the 
t  give  the 
ide  world 
inder  the 
d  display- 
is  set  in  a 
We  wit- 
illing  cry 
nd  as  the 
s  it  shone 
i  rapids  to 
vfully  dis- 
with  the 


ancy, 


the 


le  horrors 
with  ago- 
over  the 
ifathomed 
[lever  rest 
leen  made 
ggression. 
the  flimsy 

d  devoted 
I  mediately 
•rave  men 
four  rifles 
jsented  to 
)Iied  with 

good  and 
ivelled  by 

met  Gen- 
They  en- 
y  to  their 
ailroad  to 


Batavia,  and  thence  again  by  stage  to  Buffalo,  where  we  arrived 
on  the  evening  of  the  15th,  and  put  up  at  the  Eagle  tavern,  the 
head-quarters  of  the  patriots.  There  we  soon  learned  that  Navy 
Island  had  been  evacuated  the  day  before,  and  that  about  500 
of  the  men  were  then  in  Buffalo. 

W.  L.  Mackenzie  was  stopping  at  a  private  house,  and  it  was 
reported  that  the  authorities  of  the  United  States  were  anxious 
to  iirrcst  him.  I  h;ul  letters  to  him  from  General  McLeod  and 
Doctor  llolph.  Without  much  difficulty  I  found  his  place  of 
retreat,  mid  after  a  little  parley  with  the  landlady,  who  was  ex- 
ceedingly cautioiiH,  lest  her  guest  should  fall  into  the  hands  of 
his  eneinieH,  I  gained  an  introduction.  Mr.  Mackenzie  was 
enjoying  the  society  of  his  wife,  and  those  kind  attentions  which 
their  circumstances  demanded  were  cheerfully  bestowed.  I  met 
with  a  cordiul  reception,  and  spent  a  few  moments  in  talking 
over  plans  for  future  operations. 

A  mnn  named  T.  J.  Sutherland  had  been  commissioned  as  a 
Brig:idier-Ooneral  by  the  provincial  government  at  Navy  Island, 
and  was  then  on  hit)  way  to  take  command  of  a  considerable 
number  of  Cnnndian  refugees  and  American  volunteers  from 
Ohio  and  Micliigiin,  who,  it  was  expected,  would  unfurl  the 
patriot  banner  at  Maiden,  on  the  Canada  side  of  the  Detroit 
llivcr.  General  McLeod  wished  me  to  take  a  Lieutenant- 
Colonel's  commission  under  Sutherland.  Mackenzie  advised 
me  not  to  do  so,  as  he  had  no  confidence  in  the  man.  Subse- 
quent events  proved  that  Sutherland  was  totally  unfit  for  the 
command  to  wliicli  he  had  been  appointed,  and  that  Mackenzie 
had  rightly  cHtitnated  his  character. 

It  may  Ik?  proper  to  remark  here  that  I  held  only  a  Captain's 
commission  in  the  patriot  service.  Some  of  my  friends  supposed 
that  I  was  a  ('olonei,  l)ut  they  were  mistaken.  Though  repeat- 
edly urged  to  accept  a  higher  commission,  I  preferred  to  fill  a 
subordinate  station. 

The  next  evening,  by  agreement,  Mackenzie  met  me  at  the 
Eagle  tavern.  General  Van  Rensselaer,  Mr.  Gibson,  and  the 
famous  "nil!  Johnson,"  the  hero  of  the  "  Thousand  Islands," 
were  prescMit  at  this  meeting.  It  was  judged  inexpedient  to 
c«)ntinuc  operations  in  tnat  quarter,  under  the  then  existing  cir- 
cumstances. Ill  addition  to  the  large  force  stationed  on  the 
Canada  sid(!  to  prevent  a  landing,  the  authorities  of  the  United 
States  w(!re  making  great  exertions  to  thwart  our  plans.  We 
therefore  turned  our  attention  to  other  points,  with  a  view  of 
making  a  demonstration  at  some  subsequent  time.     It  was  finally 


% 


80 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES    OF 


asreed  that  an  attempt  should  be  made  to  take  Fort  Henry,  at 
Kingiton,  on  or  about  the  32d  of  February.  With  a  view  to 
make  preparations  for  this  new  scheme  I  returned  toWatertown, 
at  the  particular  request  of  Bill  Johnson.  Mr.  Gibson  and  Mr. 
Mackenzie  and  wife  accompanied  me.  Under  an  assumed  name, 
Mr.  Gibson  took  lodgings  at  a  hotel.  Mr.  Mackenzie  kept  se- 
creted twelve  or  fifteen  days,  during  which  time  his  letters  came 
to  my  care. 

A  circular  was  issued  and  extensively  distributed  through 
Jeflferson  county,  calling  upon  the  friends  of  Canada  for  contri- 
butions. In  answer  to  this  circular,  provisions,  clothing,  and 
money,  were  freely  offered.  Teams  were  sent  round  to  collect 
these  articles,  the  general  depot  being  at  Watertown. 

Active  efforts  were  also  made  in  enlisting  men  and  procuring 
the  necessary  arms  and  ammunition.  Teams  were  sent  out  in 
all  directions  to  collect  munitions  of  war.  I  went  with  one 
to  Carthage,  Champion,  Rutland,  Denmark,  and  Lockport,  and 
returned  well  laden  with  the  free  offerings  of  a  free  people. 

On  the  night  of  the  17th  of  February  we  borrowed,  without 
leave,  about  700  stand  of  arms  from  the  arsenal  at  Watertown. 
It  was  the  general  opinion,  the  next  day,  that  the  arms  had  gone 
toward  Canada;  but  the  U.  S.  Deputy  Marshal,  Jason  Fair- 
banks, Esq.,  in  his  pursuit  of  them,  went  in  an  opposite  direc- 
tion, and  before  he  had  travelled  many  miles  ruined  a  valuable 
horse,  worth  nearly  as  much  as  the  guns.  For  future  security  a 
guard  was  set  over  the  arsenal.  Nevertheless,  some  of  the  arms 
escaped  on  subsequent  occasions,  and  it  was  mischievously  re- 
ported that  the  sentinels  were  very  useful  in  passing  them  out  of 
the  building.     Eventually  they  were  nearly  all  returned. 

Whether  the  seizure  of  these  arms  was  a  justifiable  act  or  not, 
is  a  question  I  shall  not  stop  to  discuss.  It  certainly  was  well 
planned  and  boldly  executed,  which  cannot  be  said  of  all  the 
projects  to  liberate  Canada.  The  matter  was  afterwards  inves- 
tigated by  the  grand  jury,  but  very  little  information  could  be 
obtained.  The  testimony  of  a  teamster,  named  Carter,  who 
lived  near  French  Creek,  and  who  had  occasionally  bee-^i  crr.- 
ployed  by  Bill  Johnson,  was  about  as  much  to  the  point  as  any. 
It  was  nearly  as  follows.  He  .was  asked  if  he  was  acquainted 
with  William  Johnson.     He  replied  that  he  was. 

"  Have  you  been  in  his  service  recently  ?" 

••  I  have." 

**  Was  you  at  Watertown  on  the day  of  February?" 

"  I  was." 


I: 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    IIEUSTIS. 


ai 


enry,  at 
view  to 
tertowii, 
and  Mr. 
id  name, 
kept  se- 
rs  came 

through 
r  contri- 
ing,  and 
a  collect 

rocuring 
tt  out  in 
with  one 
»ort,  and 
)le. 

,  without 
itertown. 
had  gone 
son  Fair- 
ite  direc- 
,  valuable 
ecurity  a 
the  arms 
ously  re- 
im  out  of 

• 

ct  or  not, 
was  well 
>f  all  the 
ds  inves- 
could  be 
rter,  who 
been  cr:;- 
t  as  any. 
:quainted 


ary?" 


*•  Did  your  carry  a  load  from  Watertown  to  French  Creek?" 

"  I  did." 

"  Where  did  you  get  that  load?" 

**  When  1  drove  up  to  Gilsou's  hotel,  in  the  evening,  a  man 
came  out  and  said  he  would  take  care  of  my  horses.  He  was  a 
large  man,  or  else  he  was  considerably  bundled  up.  I  gave  up 
the  horses  to  him  and  went  in  to  warm  me.  In  about  half  an 
hour  the  horses  were  again  brought  to  the  door.  I  went  out, 
and  the  man  told  me  to  drive  to  French  Creek  as  quick  as 
possible." 

**  What  did  your  load  consist  of?" 

**  I  don't  know." 

"  Why  didn't  you  look  to  see?" 

"  I  didn't  want  to  know.^' 

"Was  it  light  or  heavy?" 

*'  It  drawed  pretty  heavy." 

"  What  did  you  do  with  the  load  ?  " 

''  When  I  got  to  French  Creek,  the  next  morning,  I  drove  to 
Buzzell's  hotel,  where  I  stopped  and  went  in  to  warm  me. 
Being  very  cold,  I  remained  some  time.  When  I  went  out  my 
team  was  standing  at  the  door,  but  the  sleigh  had  been  unloaded. 
I  then  took  my  team  and  drove  home,  and  that  is  all  I  know 
about  it." 

Several  pieces  of  cannon  belonging  to  artillery  companies  in 
different  towns  in  the  county  wc^re  also  borrowed  without  much 
ceremony,  and  probably  without  much  regret  on  the  part  of  the 
companies.     They  were  afterwards  returned  in  good  order. 

On  the  evening  of  the  21st  of  February  about  GOO  men  assem- 
bled at  French  Creek,  a  small  village  on  the  American  side  of 
the  St.  Lawrence,  with  the  intention  of  marching  the  next  day 
upon  Kingston,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river.  General  R. 
Van  Rensselaer  was  to  command  the  expedition.  With  a  com- 
pany of  fifty  men  he  marched  on  the  ice  that  evening  to  Hickory 
Island,  six  miles  from  French  Creek.  This  was  a  small  island, 
with  only  one  house  on  it. 

The  next  morning  I  led  another  company  of  fifty  men  to  the 
Island.  Captain  Lightle  soon  joined  us  with  another  company. 
About  noon  Leman  L.  Leach  made  his  appearance  with  a  com- 
pany from  Syracuse.  Colonel  Martin  Woodruff  remained  at 
French  Creek  for  the  purpose  of  forwarding  the  volunteers  aa 
they  arrived.  A  large  number  of  men  in  sleighs  visited  the 
island  during  the  day,  but  many  of  them  only  stopped  a  short 
time.     At  no  time  did  our  force  consist  of  more  than  300  men. 


32 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OP 


Three  persons  were  arrested,  suspected  of  being  spies  from 
Canada.  They  were  placed  under  guard  and  detained  till  night, 
when  they  were  released.  About  sundown  Bill  Johnson  joined 
us.  Our  number  had  then  materially  diminished.  There  was 
much  disappointment  manifested  at  not  finding  a  larger  force 
assembled.  We  had  calculated  on  a  thousand  men,  good  and 
true,  for  this  expedition,  and  had  provided  an  ample  supply  of 
arms,  ammunition,  and  provisions.  With  feelings  of  deep  morti- 
fication we  were  obliged  to  pronounce  the  enterprise  a  failure. 
But  so  unwilling  was  I  to  relinquish  the  attack  upon  Fort  Wel- 
lington, that  I  still  offered  to  go  if  ninety-nine  would  accompany 
me  in  the  hazardous  assault.  My  proposal  was  considered  too 
daring  and  impolitic,  and  but  few  were  willing  to  embark  in  an 
expedition  which  promised  nothing  but  inevitable  defeat  and 
destruction.  We  therefore  returned  to  French  Creek,  Johnson 
and  myself  being  the  last  to  leave  the  island.  Various  excuses 
were  made  by  those  who  disappointed  our  expectations.  I  am 
willing  the  mantle  of  charity  should  hide  their  conduct. 

Some  of  us  remained  at  French  Creek  over  night,  but  the 
larger  portion  dispersed  in  various  directions.  The  inhabitants 
of  the  village,  fearing  an  attack  from  the  British  in  the  course 
of  the  night,  had  fled  into  the  country.  The  occupants  of  one 
or  two  houses,  known  to  be  tories,  burnt  blue  lights  in  their 
windows,  that  their  British  friends  might  spare  them  in  case  of 
an  attack. 

The  day  after  we  left  Hickory  Island  two  peaceable  farmers, 
from  Jefferson  county,  named  John  Packard  and  George  Holson- 
burgh,  went  there  merely  out  of  curiosity.  They  were  arrest- 
ed by  a  company  of  British  dragoons,  and  closely  confined  in 
Kingston  jail  till  August,  when  they  were  discharged  without  a 
trial.  They  had  no  connection  with  the  patriots,  and,  notwith- 
standing that  fact  was  fully  and  clearly  represented  to  the  proper 
authorities,  they  were  imprisoned  six  months !  So  much  for 
British  justice. 

General  Van  Rensselaer,  after  the  failure  at  Hickory  Island, 
went  to  Syracuse,  where  he  was  arrested  and  lodged  in  jail, 
charged  with  a  breach  of  the  neutrality  law.  He  was  required 
to  give  heavy  bonds  for  his  appearance  at  Albany,  in  September, 
for  trial.  He  had  no  difficulty  in  procuring  bail,  and  at  the  ap- 
pointed time  was  tried,  adjudged  guilty,  and  sentenced  to  pay  a 
fine  and  be  imprisoned.  He  was  a  son  of  the  late  postmaster  at 
Albany.  The  father  was  a  gallant  soldier  in  the  last  war,  and 
was  wounded  at  Queenston.     At  the  commencement  of  the  Ca- 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     O.    IIEUSTIS. 


33 


nudiaii  difTicultics  the  son  was  editing  a  paper  in  Albany.  His 
sympathies  were  at  unce  enlisted  in  behalf  of  the  patriots.  He 
was  one  of  the  earliest  to  join  their  standard,  and  was  chief  in 
command  at  Navy  Island.  He  had  been  educated  at  West 
Point,  and  was  at  that  time  thirty  or  thirty-five  years  old.  I 
formed  an  acquaintance  with  him,  and  believed  him  to  be  a  man 
of  undoubted  courage,  and  well  qualified  for  a  military  chief- 
tain. 

It  had  been  represented  to  us  that  thousands  in  Canada  were 
ready  to  flock  to  the  patriot  standard  as  soon  as  it  could  be  plant- 
ed on  their  soil.  They  were  destitute  of  arms;  and  any  attempt 
to  revolt,  without  assistance  from  abroad,  would  but  result  in  de- 
feat, the  consequences  of  which  would  be  terrible  to  themselves 
and  their  families.  If  we  could  take  Fort  Henry,  a  rallying- 
point  would  be  established,  where  the  Canadians  could  muster, 
provide  themselves  with  arms,  and  prepare  to  meet  the  tyrants 
who  were  oppressing  them.  The  scheme  appeared  practicable, 
and  I  have  always  lamented  that  no  better  success  attended  it. 
It  is  a  satisfaction,  however,  to  feel  that  no  efforts  were  spared 
on  my  part  to  realize  the  high  hopes  which  were  entertained  of 
this  enterprise,  so  unfruitful  in  its  results. 

I  accepted  an  invitation  to  ride  home,  with  some  friends  from 
Wutertown.  On  the  way  we  stopped  at  Depeauville,  for  dinner. 
We  there  met  the  U.  S.  District-Attorney,  N.  S.  Benton,  Esq., 
and  Deputy-Marshal  Fairbanks,  on  their  way  to  French  Creek, 
in  the  expectation  of  official  business.  Our  sudden  return  from 
Canada  gave  the  Deputy-Marshal  an  opportunity  to  crack  a  few 
jokes  at  my  expense.  The  learned  Attorney  wished  to  know  by 
what  authority  we  had  presumed  to  arrest  and  detain  men  on  the 
Island.  Without  knowing  his  official  character,  I  replied  that 
it  was  highly  probable  that  gentlemen  of  as  much  consequence 
as  he  appeared  to  imagine  himself  might  have  been  arrested,  if 
found  there  under  suspicious  circumstances.  Turning  to  his 
companion,  he  said,  "  Mr.  Fairbanks,  take  notice  of  that;  it's  a 
long  road  that  never  turns." 

On  the  27th  of  February  Willia.n  Johnson  was  arrested,  by 
Mr.  Garrow,  U.  S.  Marshal,  and  gav     bail  for  his  appearance  at 
Albany,  in  September,  to  answer  to  a  charge  of  violating  the 
neutrality  law.     At  the  trial  he  was  acquitted. 
2* 


CHAPTER  III. 

Arrest  of  the  Author — Journey  to  Auburn  ^  in  Charge  of  the  U.  S 
Marshal — Amusing  Incident  —  Curiosity  to  see  a  Famous 
Man  —  Examination  before  Judge  Conklin  —  Discharge  — 
Examination  of  Benjamin  Collins  —  The  Witnesses  —  Trials 
in  Canada — Execution  of  Lount  and  Matthews. 

On  the  20th  of  February  I  was  politely  waited  upon  by  the 
U.  S.  Marshal,  Nathaniel  Oarrow,  Esq.,  and  very  kiiidly  told 
that  my  sympathy  for  the  Canadians  had  been  indulgn^  a  little 
too  freely,  and  not  exactly  according  to  the  "  statute  «n  such 
cases  made  and  provided."  In  other  words,  I  had  an  account  to 
settle  with  Uncle  Sam,  for  having  treated  one  of  his  darling 
pets,  the  neutrality  law,  with  disrespect.  Mr.  Benjamin  Collins 
was  placed  in  the  same  category,  and  bail  in  the  modest  little 
sum  of  $10,000  was  demanded,  for  our  appearance  at  Albany, 
in  September,  for  trial.  We  had  no  difficulty,  however,  in  find- 
ing good  bondsmen.  But,  before  the  bail  * »r>nds  were  executed, 
I  told  Mr.  Collins  we  had  better  not  give  bail,  as  we  should  be 
compelled  to  go  to  Albany  at  our  own  expense,  and  we  could 
have  a  preliminary  examination,  which  might  result  in  our  dis- 
charge, by  going  with  the  Marshal  to  Auburn.  At  any  rate,  we 
could  as  well  give  bail  in  Auburn  as  in  Watertown,  and  the 
government  would  have  to  bear  our  expenses  while  in  charge  of 
the  Marshal.  I  therefore  told  Mr.  Garrow  that  we  should  not 
give  bail.  He  said  he  should  be  ready  to  start  with  us  at  ten 
o'clock  that  night,  in  the  stage.  I  offered  to  give  bail  for  my 
appearance  at  the  appointed  time,  but  the  Marshal  said  he  would 
take  my  word  for  it,  and  we  were  at  liberty  to  go  where  we 
pleased. 

The  stage  started  at  the  appointed  hour.  The  only  passen- 
gers were  the  Marshal,  two  Deputy-Marshals,  Mr.  Collins,  and 
myself.  The  stage  agent  told  the  driver  to  stop  when  he  arrived 
opposite  the  Jefferson  County  Bank,  to  take  in  a  passenger. 
The  driver  obeyed  his  instructiofts ;  but  a  salute  from  the  village 
cannon,  which  our  friends  had  arranged  as  expressive  of  their 
good  wishes,  was  the  only  passenger  obtained  at  the  place  desig- 
nated.    The  cannon's  loud  peal  was  sweet  music  in  our  earn 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL    D.    HEUSTIS. 


speaking  as  it  did  in  a  voice  of  encouragement  and  sympathy 
from  those  with  whom  we  had  long  been  intimate,  and  whose 
confidence  and  esteem  we  highly  prized. 

We  arrived  at  Oswego  the  next  day,  at  noon,  where  we  re- 
mained until  the  following  morning,  the  Marshal  having  some 
oflicial  business  to  attend  to.  We  were  allowed  to  go  where  we 
pleased  without  any  restraint,  and  all  our  bills,  even  to  the  black- 
ing of  our  boots,  were  settled  by  the  Marshal. 

When  we  left  Oswego,  our  company  was  increaseo  oy  the 
addition  of  George  Rathbun,  Esq.,  a  young  lawyer  of  that  place, 
who  had  acted  as  aid  to  General  Van  Rensselaer  at  Hickory 
Island,  and  one  other  person,  whose  name  I  do  not  recollect. 
They  were  supposed  to  have  committed  the  same  enormous  of- 
fence which  was  laid  to  our  charge.  Daniel  C.  Burns,  a  consta- 
ble of  Oswego,  was  taken  as  a  witness. 

On  the  road,  the  Marshal  appeared  to  be  in  a  facetious  mood, 
and  created  some  merriment  by  his  remarks  concerning  the 
patriot  army,  and  by  inquiring  of  me  what  commission  I  held. 
For  the  sake  of  the  sport,  he  said  he  would  furnish  champagne 
for  the  company,  if  I  would  consent  to  pass  for  ''  General 
Mackenzie,"  at  the  hotel  where  we  were  to  stop  for  dinner,  and 
where  the  Marshal  was  well  known.  The  fame  of  "General 
Mackenzie  "  had  spread  through  the  land,  and  the  desire  to  see 
him  was  great,  especially  in  the  section  of  country  through  which 
we  were  trsivelling.  It  was  generally  supposed  that  the  Marshal 
was  about  to  arrest  Mr.  Mackenzie,  and  the  report  that  he  had 
him  in  custody  would  easily  gain  credence.  I  consented  to  act 
the  part  assigned  to  me.  Constable  Burns  was  to  officiate  as 
my  waiter,  or  servant,  and  he  took  a  seat  on  the  box  with  the 
driver. 

It  being  just  before  the  March  election,  there  was  a  caucus  at 
the  hotel,  of  about  200  persons.  As  soon  as  he  arrived,  the 
driver,  according  to  instructions,  reported  that  the  Marshal  had 
"  General  Mackenzie "  in  his  charge.  The  news  spread  like 
wildfire,  and  before  we  entered  the  hotel  a  large  crowd  had  con- 
gregated in  the  passage-way,  anxious  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  the 
hero.  The  Marshal  apparently  treated  me  with  much  respect, 
and  Mr.  Burns  was  exceedingly  devoted  in  his  attentions.  We 
had  to  wait  a  few  moments  for  dinner,  the  crowd  around  the 
hotel  in  the  mean  time  being  considerably  augmented.  One 
man  actually  sent  his  horse  and  sleigh  the  distance  of  a  mile  and 
a  half,  after  his  beloved  wife,  that  she  might  see  the  distinguished 
stranger. 


'  i 


30 


«V\I"nvlTY     AM»     ADVUNTUKKH     <>K 


w 


1 


I  , 


A  few  of  the  more  HHpiring  were  anxious  for  an  intrude. ction, 
and  among  the  number  was  one  whose  honest  visage  and  sturdy 
frame  bespoke  him  a  tiller  of  the  soil. 

•'  I  am  glad  to  see  you,  Mr.  Mackenzie,"  said  he,  grasping 
my  hand,  **  and  hope  you  will  get  clear;  for  it  is  too  bad  to  pun- 
ish a  man,  in  this  free  country,  for  fighting  against  the  British 
tories,  law  or  no  law.  I  think  our  government  had  better  look 
afler  the  rascals  that  burnt  the  Caroline,  and  let  you  alone. 
They  are  murderers  and  pirates,  and  ought  to  be  hung  as  much 
as  anybody ;  that's  my  notion.  The  British  had  better  be  care- 
ful how  they  insult  us.  We've  got  some  of  the  old  revolutionary 
spirit  yet,  as  they'll  find  out,  if  they  don't  mind  how  they  carry 
sail.  Good  luck  to  you,  General ;  I  hope  the  court  will  clear 
you." 

"  I  thought  General  Mackenzie  had  a  sjindy  complexion,"  said 
one  of  the  multitude,  whose  bump  of  credulity  was  not  so  prom- 
inently developed,  perhaps,  as  it  might  have  been. 

"  He  wears  a  wig ;  don't  you  see  his  red  whiskers,"  instantly 
replied  Constable  Burns,  to  whom  the  remark  had  been  address- 
ed. This  answer  was  perfectly  satisfactory.  My  personal  iden- 
tity was  fully  established. 

At  the  dinner-table  all  my  wants  were  anticipated  by  the  affa- 
ble host  and  his  attendants.  Not  even  the  Marshal,  who  had 
frequently  dined  at  that  house,  and  whose  patronage  was  of  some 
consequence  to  the  landlord,  received  the  same  degree  of  atten- 
tion that  I  did.  • 

After  dinner  we  returned  to  the  sitting-room,  and  there  a  new 
scene  opened  upon  our  view.  The  women  of  the  village,  old 
and  young,  had  flocked  into  the  room  in  our  absence,  and  were 
standing  two  or  three  deep,  in  a  sort  of  semi-circle,  waiting  our 
return.  This  was  what  I  had  not  anticipated.  It  was  an  addi- 
tional act  in  the  play,  which  I  was  not  prepared  to  perform. 
However,  I  passed  through  the  ordeal  with  as  much  composure 
as  possible,  and  met  the  sparkling  glances  of  youthful  maidens, 
and  the  eager  gaze  of  aged  matrons,  peering  through  spectacles, 
with  all  the  coolness  I  could  command.  To  a  bashful  man  such 
scenes  are  embarrassing. 

"  Poor  man  !  How  I  pity  him  ! "  ejaculated  one  of  the  fair 
creatures,  in  an  audible  whisper. 

"What  will  they  do  with  him,  mother?"  inquired  a  young 
girl,  with  much  anxiety  depicted  in  her  countenance, 

"Do  you  think  they'll  hang  him?"  whispered  another,  while 
the  tears  were  coursing  down  her  cheeks. 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    IIKUHTIH. 


37 


"  It's  too  bad  ;  he  was  only  fighting  for  liberty  ! "  were  the  last 
words  I  heard,  as  wc  were  leaving  the  room  to  resume  our  seats 
in  the  stage. 

Such  manifestations  of  interest  in  the  fate  of  those  who  have 
risked  fortuiK  and  life  in  a  struggle  for  liberty,  are  not  uncom- 
mon. In  all  such  contests  the  heart  of  woman  instinctively  en- 
twines its  sympathies  around  the  oppressed  and  the  unfortunate. 

"Which  is  he 2"  "Show  him  to  me!"  As  we  passed 
through  the  crowd,  these  and  similar  expressions  came  from 
titose  who  hud  not  yet  had  an  opportunity  to  gratify  their  curios* 
ity.  Their  more  knowing  friends  very  wisely  pointed  to  me, 
and  doubtless  rejoiced  in  being  able  to  enlighten  their  neighbors. 

The  driver  snapped  his  whip  over  the  ears  of  his  leaders,  and 
again  we  were  on  the  road.  Just  as  we  started,  three  enthusi- 
astic cheers,  that  made  the  welkin  ring,  were  given  for  "  Gen- 
eral Mackenzie,"  the  ladies  waving  their  handkerchiefs  in  token 
of  approbation. 

We  indulged  ourselves  in  a  hearty  laugh;  and  the  Marshal 
observed,  "That  was  admirably  done;  we  couldn't  better  it, 
if  we  should  try." 

As  we  were  detained  at  the  hotel  some  time,  the  information 
that  "  General  Mackenzie"  was  in  the  stage  had  preceded  us  on 
the  road,  and  of  course  I  had  to  maintain  the  dignity  of  my  posi- 
tion at  the  several  stopping-places. 

When  we  arrived  at  Auburn,  in  compliance  with  a  desire  I 
had  expressed  to  the  Marshal  to  stop  at  a  good  patriot  house,  he 
took  us  to  the  Northern  Exchange,  one  of  the  best  hotels  in  the 
place,  and  told  the  landlord  to  furnish  us  with  whatever  we 
wanted.  He  then  went  to  his  own  residence,  leaving  us  to  pass 
the  Sabbath  in  our  own  way,  without  molestation. 

On  Monday  morning  we  visited  the  Auburn  State  Prison,  by 
invitation  of  the  Marshal,  whose  son  was  the  keeper,  and  who 
politely  conducted  us  through  the  whole  establishment.  Since 
that  time  I  have  had  occasion  to  contrast  the  treatment  of  the 
inmates  of  the  Auburn  Prison  with  that  which  I  have  received  at 
the  hands  of  British  tyrants.  The  Auburn  prisoners  had  been 
convicted  of  crimes  of  almost  every  hue,  yet  their  discipline  was 
much  less  severe,  and  their  living  much  better,  than  the  unfor- 
tunate patriots  had  meted  out  to  them,  for  no  other  crime  than 
an  attempt  to  establish  republican  institutions  in  Canada. 

Several  influential  citizens  of  Auburn  called  to  see  us,  in- 
quired if  they  could  render  us  any  assistance,  and  offered  to  be- 
come our  bondsmen,  if  we  should  need  any. 


il 


i  I 


i; 


3d 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


The  examinations  took  place  before  Judge  Conklin,  of  the  U. 
S.  District  Court.  Mr.  Benton,  District-Attorney,  from  Herki- 
mer county,  appeared  for  the  government.  We  employed  no 
counsel.  Among  the  witnesses  against  me,  were  Jason  Fair- 
banks, Deputy-Marshal,  Alvin  Hunt,  Esq.,  Editor  of  the  Water- 
town  JefTersonian,  Nathan  Wiley,  Luther  Gilson,  Linus  W. 
Clark,  and  Austin  R.  Skinner,  all  from  Watertown,  besides 
several  from  French  Creek  and  Adams.  Their  testimony  did 
not  sustain  the  charge.  The  last  witness  put  upon  the  stand 
was  the  Deputy-Marshal,  and  the  District-Attorney  endeavored 
to  prove  by  him  that  I  had  insulted  and  abused  him  (Benton)  by 
saying,  at  Depeauville,  that  gentlemen  of  as  much  consequence 
as  he  might  have  been  put  under  guard,  if  found  on  Hickory 
Island  under  suspicious  circumstances.  After  the  evidence  was 
all  in.  Judge  Conklin,  addressing  the  Attorney,  said,  "  You  do 
not  expect  to  hold  Mr.  Heustis  to  bail  on  this  testimony."  Ben- 
ton replied,  "  Yes,  may  it  please  your  honor,  I  think  abusing  an 
ofiScer  is  sufficient  to  hold  him  to  bail."  The  Judge,  with  a 
smile,  remarked,  ''I  consider  that  nothing  but  bar-room  talk," 
and  turning  to  me,  added,  "  I  shall  discharge  you."  So  the  dis- 
tinguished Attorney  had  to  travel  his  long  road  still  farther,  to 
find  the  turn.  He  felt  the  cutting  remark  of  the  Judge,  and 
hung  his  head  a  little  lower  than  it  had  been. 

After  my  discharge  the  Marshal  publicly  congratulated  me,  in 
the  crowded  court-room,  on  my  safe  deliverance  from  the 
clutches  of  the  law.  It  was  very  easy  to  perceive  that  the  pop- 
ular voice  sanctioned  the  decison  of  the  Judge. 

Colonel  Martin  Woodruff,  of  Salina,  Onondaga  county,  was 
the  next  one  called.  He  waived  an  examination  and  gave  bail. 
George  Rathbun,  Esq.,  was  examined  and  discharged. 

When  the  case  of  Benjamin  Collins  came  on,  the  District- 
Attorney  stated  that  he  was  not  prepared  to  proceed,  as  the  wit- 
nesses by  whom  he  expected  to  prove  the  charge  had  kept  out 
of  the  way,  and  he  had  not  been  able  to  summon  them.  He 
therefore  wished  that  Mr.  Collins  would  give  bail,  and  waive  an 
examination.  Mr.  C.  said,  if  the  government  would  provide  him 
with  a  suitable  team,  a  span  of  horses  and  sleigh,  he  would  go 
himself  and  get  the  witnesses.  Strange  as  it  may  ^oem,  the  team 
was  provided,  and  he  immediately  started  for  Watertown,  a  dis- 
tance of  100  miles,  after  witnesses  to  convict  himself!  In  due 
time  he  returned,  with  all  the  witnesses  required.  In  the  course 
of  the  examination  one  of  them  was  asked  if  he  was  on  Hickory 
Island,  on  the  22d  of  February.     He  replied  that  he  was. 


fit  ! 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    IIEUSTIS. 


80 


(I 


was 


M 


Did  you  see  Mr.  Collins  there?" 

"  I  did." 

"  Did  you  see  him  have  any  arms  1 " 

"  1  can't  say  that  I  did." 

♦'  Was  he  an  officer,  exercising  any  command  ?  " 

**  I  don't  know  that  he  was." 

"  How  came  you  at  Hickory  Island?" 

**  I  went  because  the  rest  did." 

"  Did  you  have  any  arms?" 

"  Yes,  I  had  a  good  rifle." 

"  What  else  did  you  have  ?  " 

"  I  had  250  balls,  and  powder  enough  to  push  'em,  by  G— 

The  Judge  reminded  the  witness  that  he  ought  to  be  a  little 
more  careful,  or  he  might  criminate  himself.  Mr.  Collins  was 
finally  discharged,  and  thus  ended  the  examinations,  which  cost 
the  government  a  round  sum  of  money,  and  did  very  little  good. 
The  District-Attorney  did  not  gain  many  laurels  in  the  business. 
I  returned  to  Watertown  with  Mr.  Fairbanks. 

During  the  spring  and  summer  of  1838,  hundreds  of  quiet  <ind 
peaceable  men,  in  Canada,  were  tried  for  high  treason.  They 
had  been  thrust  into  prison,  their  families  abused,  their  property 
sacrificed,  and  every  effort  made  to  get  them  convicted.  After 
suffering  much  by  imprisonment  and  brutal  treatment,  many  of 
them  were  acquitted.  It  was  impossible  to  find  juries  wicked 
enough  to  declare  them  guilty,  notwithstanding  the  whole  power 
of  the  government  was  exerted  against  them,  aided  by  the  judges, 
who  were  all  bitter  tories.  Those  who  were  convicted  were 
doomed  to  perish  on  the  scaffold,  or  endure  the  more  lingering 
and  dreadful  sentence  of  transportation  to  a  penal  colony. 

Among  the  martyrs  were  Colonel  Samuel  Lount  and  Captain 
Peter  Matthews,  to  whom  I  have  before  alluded.  Their  execu- 
tion was  such  a  barbarous  act  of  cruelty,  that  I  must  briefly  al- 
lude to  the  circumstances  attending  it,  although  they  may  be 
known  to  the  public  generally.  It  took  place  on  the  12th  of 
April.  The  day  before,  Mrs.  Lount  presented  to  the  Governor, 
Sir  George  Arthur,  a  petition  signed  by  30,000  inhabitants,  who 
were  opposed  to  shedding  their  blood.  But  that  cruel  tyrant 
insulted  the  wretched  woman,  by  sneeringly  asking  her  if  she 
thought  her  husband  was  prepared  to  die ;  and,  being  answered  in 
the  affirmative,  telling  her  that  at  another  time  he  might  not  be 
so  well  prepared.  He  said  that  men  who  could  control  the  sym- 
pathies of  so  many  loyal  people  were  dangerous  citizens,  and  he 
should  not  pardon  them.     The  unhappy  wife  swooned  and  fell 


40 


(•APTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


senseless  at  his  feet.  lie  turned  upon  his  heel,  and  ordered  her 
to  be  removed  from  the  apartment.  That  night  the  families  of 
the  condemned  were  permitted  to  take  a  hist  sad  farewell,  and 
language  is  inadequate  to  picture  the  scene.  Colonel  Lount  left 
a  widow  and  seven  children,  and  Captain  Matthews  a  widow  and 
fifteen  children.  They  were  wealthy  men,  and  the  poor  and  un- 
fortunate had  often  been  relieved  by  their  quiet  and  unobtrusive 
acts  of  benevolence.  Ardently  beloved,  both  in  Canada  and 
the  United  States,  their  melancholy  fate  served  to  excite  the 
public  mind  still  more  against  the  government  which  had  slain 
them. 

Mr.  Charles  Durand  gives  the  following  account  of  the  last  days 
of  these  noble  martyrs,  which  is  confirmed  by  Doctor  Theller, 
both  of  these  gentlemen  being  confined  in  the  same  prison,  under 
sentence  of  death :  "  Matthews  always  bore  up  in  spirits  well. 
He  was,  until  death,  firm  in  his  opinion  of  the  justice  of  the 
cause  he  had  espoused.  He  never  recanted.  He  was  ironed 
and  kept  in  the  darkest  cell  in  the  prison,  like  a  murderer.  He 
slept  sometimes  in  blankets  that  were  wet  and  frozen.  He  had 
nothing  to  cheer  him  but  the  approbation  of  his  companions  and 
his  conscience.  Lount  was  ironed,  though  kept  in  a  better 
room.  He  used  tc  i,ell  us  often,  in  writing,  not  to  be  downcast ; 
that  he  believed  '  Canada  would  yet  be  free,'  and  that  we  were 
'  contending  in  a  good  cause.'  He  said  he  was  not  sorry  for 
what  he  had  done,  and  that  he  would  do  so  again.  This  was  his 
mind  until  death.  Lount  was  a  social  and  excellent  companion, 
and  a  well-informed  man.  He  sometimes  spoke  to  us  under  the 
sill  of  our  door.  He  did  so  on  the  morning  of  his  execution  I 
He  bid  us  '  farewell  ! '  and  said  he  was  on  his  way  to  another 
world.  He  was  calm.  The  gallows  was  erected  just  before  our 
window  grates.  We  could  see  all  plainly.  The  martyrs  as- 
cended the  platform  with  unfaltering  steps,  like  men.  Lount 
turned  his  head  to  his  friends,  as  if  to  say  a  '  long  farewell ! '  He 
and  Matthews  knelt  and  prayed,  and  were  then  launched  into 
eternity.     O !   the  horror  of  our  feelings !     Who  can  describe 


our  emotions! 


u 


41 


CHAPTER   IV. 

Organization  of- Patriot  Lodges — Burning  of  the  Sir  Robert 
Peel — Scheme  to  liberate  the  Niagara  Prisoners — Prepara- 
tionsfor  the  Attack  on  Prescott — Embarkation  at  Sackett's 
Harbor  —  Desertion — Unsuccessful  Attempt  to  land  a* 
Prescott  —  Going  ashore  at  Windmill  Point  —  Our  Flag 
unfurled  —  A  Naval  Exploit  —  Supper  at  a  Parm-Housc —^ 
Colonel  Von  Shoultz  appointed  Commander-in-Chief 

Sometime  in  the  month  of  May,  a  Mr.  Estabrooks,  of  Cleve- 
lund,  Ohio,  came  to  Watertown  and  instituted  a  secret  society, 
or  lodge,  on  the  same  plan  as  those  previously  established  at 
Cleveland  and  other  places.  These  lodges  were  designed  to 
promote  union  and  concert  of  action  among  the  friends  of  Cana- 
dian independence.  I  was  admitted  a  member  the  first  night. 
Very  soon  our  lodge  numbered  nineteen  hundred  members.  Some 
of  our  members  went  into  the  neighboring  towns  and  organized 
other  lodges,  and  in  a  short  time  they  were  formed  in  nearly 
every  town  in  that  region.     Similar  societies  existed  in  Canada. 

On  the  night  of  the  29th  of  May,  the  British  steamer  Sir 
Robert  Peel,  owned  principally  by  Judge  Jones,  of  Brockville,  a 
rank  tory,  was  seized  by  a  party  of  Canadian  refugees  and  Amer- 
icans, at  Wells'  Island,  and  destroyed  by  fire,  the  crew  and  pas- 
sengers first  being  ordered  on  shore.  According  to  the  testimony 
of  the  passengers,  the  attacking  narty  manifested  no  disposition 
to  plunder  or  to  take  life.  They  were  painted  and  disguised  as 
Indians.  Judge  Jones,  the  owner  of  the  boat,  had  rendered 
himself  odious  in  the  view  of  all  except  inveterate  tories,  by  the 
severity  of  his  treatment  of  the  patriots.  He  had  counselled  the 
burning  of  their  buildings  and  the  confiscation  of  their  property, 
and  when  they  were  brought  before  him  for  trial  he  exerted  all 
his  power  to  send  them  to  the  gallows. 

The  destruction  of  this  boat  was  the  act  of  a  few  individuals, 
and  the  patriots,  as  a  body,  were  not  responsible  for  it.  It  was 
done,  probably,  in  retaliation  for  the  burning  of  the  Caroline, 
though  no  lives  were  taken,  the  '*  Indians"  not  being  so  savage 
as  the  loyal  miscreants  of  Queen  Victoria.  Lord  Durham,  Gov- 
ernor-General of  the  Canadas,  offered  a  reward  of  $4,000  for  the 
apprehension  of  any  one  concerned.    The  offence  having  been 


<['       :i 


42 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTUUE3     OF 


committed  in  the  State  of  New  York,  the  offenders  could  only 
be  brought  to  punishment  before  her  judiciul  tribunals.  Several 
persons  were  arrested  and  tried  at  Water  town,  but  were  acquit- 
ted for  want  of  proof.  The  event  served  stiil  more  to  inflame 
the  public  mind  on  both  sides  of  the  line. 

Early  in  August,  sixteen  persons  were  tried  at  Niagara,  Upper 
Canada,  and  condemned  to  be  hung  on  the  25th  of  that  month. 
Several  of  them  were  Americans,  who  had  taken  part  in  the  fight 
at  the  Short  Hills,  in  the  Niagara  district,  on  the  21st  of  June. 
Linus  W.  Miller,  a  young  lawyer,  from  Stockton,  Chautauqua 
county,  N.  Y.,  was  one  of  them.  At  one  of  our  lodge  meeting^» 
a  prominent  member  told  me  he  had  made  arrangements  for  a 
party  of  men,  from  Syracuse,  to  meet  him  at  Oswego,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  going  over  to  liberate  these  prisoners,  and  he  wished  nte 
to  accompany  them,  which  I  cheerfully  consented  to  do.  We 
had  a  band  of  fifty  brave  and  noble  spirits  engaged  for  the  en- 
terprise. We  went  by  different  routes,  but  all  met  at  Youngs- 
town,  on  the  American  side  of  Niagara  River,  a  distance  of  150 
miles  from  Watertown.  Our  men  were  all  promptly  on  the 
ground,  and  we  had  every  thing  in  readiness  to  cross  the  river, 
which  was  to  be  done  in  the  night. 

Before  the  appointed  time  for  crossing  had  arrived,  however, 
news  came  that  the  sentence  of  the  prisoners  had  been  commuted 
to  transportation  for  life  to  Van  Dieman's  Land,  and  that  they 
had  been  removed  to  Fort  Henry,  at  Kingston.  The  prisoners 
received  notice  of  the  commutation  of  their  sentence  on  the  22d, 
three  days  before  their  execution  was  to  have  taken  place.  The 
next  day  they  were  removed,  chained  and  handcuffed,  to  Fort 
Henry,  the  strongest  fortress  in  Canada,  except  that  at  Quebec. 
Their  removal  had  put  them  out  of  our  reach,  and  we  disbanded 
and  returned  to  our  respective  homes.  I  afterwards  had  an  op- 
portunity to  cultivate  an  acquaintance  with  some  of  these  men, 
at  Van  Dieman^s  Land,  where  they  arrived  a  short  time  before 
me,  and  where  we  suffered  alike  the  captive's  awful  doom. 

About  this  time,  a  plan  was  maturing  in  our  lodge  meetings 
for  another  attempt  to  hoist  the  patriot  standard  on  the  soil  of 
Canada.  It  was  at  first  understood  that  the  expedition  was  to 
start  in  November,  and  go  by  way  of  Cleveland,  where  it  would 
be  joined  by  a  large  force  raised  in  that  vicinity.  At  a  meeting 
of  the  leaders  or  officers,  at  Watertown,  General  Estes  proposed 
that  instead  of  going  to  Cleveland,  we  should  go  down  the  St. 
Lawrence  and  land  at  Prescott,  a  small  town  opposite  Ogdens- 
burgh.    There  was  considerable  difference  of  opinion  as  to  the 


i 


a 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.    HEUSTIS. 


43 


best  plan,  but  the  majority  finally  adopted  the  proposition  of 
General  Estes.  It  was  said  that  5,000  men,  including  500  Po- 
landers  from  the  city  of  New  York,  had  pledged  themselves  to 
be  ready  for  this  movement.  Thousands  of  Canadians,  it  was 
reported,  were  anxious  to  join  us,  and  would  do  so  as  soon  as 
an  opportunity  should  be  offered  them. 

It  had  originally  been  agreed  that  our  men  should  assemble  at 
Sackett's  Harbor,  on  the  5th  of  November,  and  take  passage  on 
board  the  steamer  United  States,  Captain  Van  Cleave,  a  regular 
packet  boat,  running  between  Oswego  and  Ogdensburgh.  The 
arrangements  not  being  completed,  we  did  not  embark  until  the 
11th.  Some  five  or  six  hundred  men  arrived  at  Sackett's  Har- 
bor on  the  5th,  and  after  remaining  there  several  days,  returned 
to  their  homes.  Thus  much  we  lost  by  bad  management  at  the 
outset. 

About  noon,  on  the  11th  of  November,  the  steamer  United 
States  again  touched  at  Sackett's  Harbor.  Colonel  Martin 
Woodruff,  of  Salina,  was  on  board,  and  met  me  on  the  wharf.  I 
inquired  if  he  had  with  him  the  500  Polanders  from  New  York. 
He  replied  that  only  six  of  them  had  come.  I  then  asked  how 
many  men  he  had,  in  all.  He  said  about  160.  I  told  him  our 
scheme  would  fail ;  that  we  should  be  defeated.  He  said  he  was 
av  are  of  it,  and  added,  "  I  can't  back  out,  neither  can  you.  We 
must  go  and  do  our  best.  I  had  rather  be  shot  than  to  back  out 
now."  I  assured  him  I  should  go  at  any  rate ;  that  I  had  rather 
die  than  be  branded  as  a  coward ;  and  that  whatever  might  be 
the  issue,  we  ought  to  meet  it  like  men  fighting  in  a  good  cause. 

In  all  we  had  about  400  men  on  board  when  we  left  Sackett's 
Harbor.  Colonel  Woodruff  gave  me  an  introduction  to  Colonel 
Von  Shoultz,  a  Polander,  who  afterwards,  as  the  sequel  will 
hHow,  became  our  chosen  leader.  He  was  a  gentleman  of  fine 
personal  appearance  and  pleasing  address.  Of  his  bravery  and 
heroism  I  shall  have  occasion  to  speak  hereafter. 

Our  force  was  considerably  augmented  at  Cape  Vincent, 
French  Creek,  and  Milieu's  Bay.  At  the  latter  place  we  found 
two  schooners,  loaded  with  provisions,  arms,  and  ammunition, 
intended  for  our  use.  They  had  sailed  from  Oswego  a  few  days 
before,  and  had  on  board  between  one  and  two  hundred  men. 
The  United  States  towed  these  schooners  down  the  river,  one 
being  lashed  on  each  side. 

Our  design  was  to  attack  Fort  Wellington,  at  Prescott.  A 
few  miles  above  that  place  the  schooners  were  to  be  detached 
from  the  steamer,  after  having  taken  on  board  all  the  men,  and 


if  I 

I 

?- 


m 


44 


CAPTIVITY    AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


i'    I 


i|    4 


then  to  drift  down  to  the  wharf,  where  one  hundred  picked  men, 
headed  by  Colonel  Von  Shoultz,  were  to  land  and  attack  the 
fort.     I  was  to  have  been  one  of  the  party. 

At  the  appointed  place,  it  then  being  past  midnight,  the 
schooners  were  cut  adrift.  At  this  point  we  were  deserted  by  a 
large  portion  of  the  men,  who  refused  to  go  on  board  the  schoon- 
ers, but  proceeded  on  the  steamboat  to  Ogdensburgh.  Only 
200,  when  the  time  of  trial  came,  proved  true.  The  schooners 
were  lashed  together,  and  glided  down  the  river  with  the  current. 
As  we  touched  the  wharf,  John  Cronkhite  jumped  ashore  to 
make  fast.  The  current  was  so  strong  that  the  line  broke,  and 
we  drifted  by  the  landing.  The  sentry  on  the  wharf  fired  his 
gun  and  fled.  It  was  quite  dark,  which  produced  some  confu- 
sion. Cronkhite  succeeded  in  getting  on  board  again.  He  was 
a  man  of  few  words,  but  ever  ready  in  action.  After  our  escape 
from  Van  Dieman's  Land,  he  went  to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and 
from  thence  to  Oregon.     Since  then  I  have  not  heard  from  him. 

There  being  no  wind,  we  drifted  down  the  river  about  one 
mile  and  a  half,  and  then  one  of  the  schooners  got  aground  on  a 
bar.     The  other  was  anchored  near  by. 

General  J.  W.  Birge  had  been  intrusted  with  the  command 
of  this  expedition.  He  had  been  at  Ogdensburgh  for  two  or  three 
days,  under  pretence  of  perfecting  the  arrangements.  On  the 
morning  of  the  12th,  while  the  schooners  were  in  the  situation 
just  described,  he  came  along  side  of  us  in  a  small  boat,  but  did 
not  come  on  board.  I  asked  him  what  was  to  be  done.  He 
said  we  must  go  ashore,  and  get  the  cannon  ashore  as  quick  as 
possible.  He  then  pulled  for  Ogdensburgh,  and  I  have  never 
seen  the  coward  since.  The  last  I  heard  of  him,  he  was  sick 
with  a  complaint  vulgarly  called  the  belly-ache. 

The  schooners  were  about  half  a  mile  from  the  shore  at  Wind- 
mill Point.  Colonel  Von  Shoultz  and  eight  or  ten  others,  in- 
cluding myself,  were  in  the  first  boat  that  touched  the  shore. 
We  took  possession  of  a  stone  windmill,  six  stories  high,  to  the 
top  of  which  we  nailed  our  flag.  This  flag  was  presented  to 
Colonel  Von  Shoultz  by  the  patriotic  ladies  of  Onondaga  county. 
It  had  an  eagle  and  two  stars,  wrought  on  a  ground  of  blue,  and 
was  a  very  neat  and  beautiful  specimen  of  woman's  handiwork. 
As  it  was  unfurled  to  the  breeze,  from  the  summit  of  the  mill, 
it  was  hailed  with  enthusiastic  cheers.  That  flag  we  never 
struck.  After  we  surrendered,  it  was  secured  by  the  British 
oflicers,  and  sent  to  London,  where  one  of  our  number  has  since 
seen  it  in  the  celebrated  Tower,  among  the  trophies  taken  on 


«f: 


i 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL     D.     IIF.L'STIS. 


45 


ked  men, 
ttack  the 

ight,  the 
rted  by  a 
e  schoon- 
1.  Only 
ichooners 
>  current, 
ashore  to 
oke,  and 
fired  his 
[16  confu- 
He  M'as 
ur  escape 
ands,  and 
from  him. 
ibout  one 
)und  on  a 

command 

o  or  three 

On  the 

situation 
t,  but  did 
one.     He 

quick  as 
ave  never 

was  sick 

atWind- 
thers,  in- 
he  shore, 
rh,  to  the 
isented  to 
ra  county. 

blue,  and 
audi  work. 

the  mill, 
we  never 
le  British 

has  since 

taken  on 


( 


' 


many  a  Moody  field  of  battle.  It  is  not  boasting  to  sny,  that 
among  al>  those  relics  of  war,  collected  from  every  quarter  of  the 
globe,  not  one  was  secured  at  greater  cost,  considering  the  small 
force  we  had  to  defend  it,  than  the  patriot  flag  taken  at  the  but- 
tle of  Prescott. 

Situated  within  one  hundred  rods  of  the  mill  were  three  stone 
houses  and  two  wooden  ones.  We  took  possession  of  the  stone 
buildings.  Under  the  direction  of  Von  Shoultz,  we  fortified  the 
mill,  by  building  a  substantial  stone  wall,  six  feet  high,  on  the 
side  fronting  the  open  field. 

We  succeeded  in  getting  on  shore,  from  one  of  the  schooners, 
three  pieces  of  cannon,  a  quantity  of  provisions,  arms,  and  am- 
munition, after  which  the  vessel  was  seized  by  the  authorities 
of  the  United  States.  The  other  schooner  still  remained  aground 
on  the  bar. 

In  the  course  of  the  forenoon,  the  British  steamer  Experiment, 
with  a  company  of  marines  on  board,  came  down  from  Prescott, 
to  take  the  schooner.  Captain  Sandum — who  was  chief  in  com- 
mand of  the  British  naval  force  on  the  lakes  and  rivers — as  soon 
he  got  within  hailing  distance,  ordered  those  on  board  the 


as 


schooner  to  go  below  and  surrender.  No  attention  was  paid  to 
his  order,  and  the  steamer  continued  on  her  course.  Mr.  Tif- 
fany, an  experienced  gunner,  had  a  loaded  cannon  mounted  on  a 
])air  of  low  wheels,  ready  to  fire,  before  Captain  Sandum  was 
near  enough  to  discover  it.  When  he  saw  the  cannon,  he  gave 
orders  to  put  the  boat  about.  Just  as  the  steamer  presented  a 
broadside,  Mr.  O.  W.  Smith  succeeded  in  touching  off  the  can- 
non, which  sent  a  ball  whizzing  into  the  very  midst  of  the  crowd 
of  men  on  the  deck  of  the  steamer.  We  afterwards  learned  that 
six  men  were  killed,  and  seven  wounded,  by  that  little  cannon 
ball.  The  steamer  immediately  returned  to  Prescott.  This 
successful  naval  exploit,  at  the  commencement  of  hostilities,  we 
regarded  as  a  favorable  omen. 

The  discharge  of  the  cannon  started  the  schooner  off  the  bar, 
and  she  was  then  run  into  Ogdensburgh,  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  river.  Eventually  she  was  seized  by  officers  of  the  United 
States,  and  we  lost  all  the  arms  and  provisions  on  board.  Mr. 
Smith  and  some  others  came  over  to  us  in  small  boats. 

In  the  afternoon,  we  mustered  our  men,  and  found  they  num- 
bered less  than  two  hundred. 

Just  before  night  Bill  Johnson  came  over  from  Ogdensburgh 
in  one  of  his  boats,  stopped  a  short  time,  and  then  returned.  He 
was  armed  with  a  rifle,  bowie  knife,  and  pistols.     He  assured  us 


I 


11 

I 

;!?tl 


f  1 


n 


46 


ADVENTUUES     OF     CAPTAIN     HEUSTIS. 


r* 


\^  I 


that  he  should  be  over  again  in  the  morning,  with  a  number  of 
men,  and  should  remain  with  us.  But  I  never  saw  him  after 
thit  time. 

At  night,  after  our  sentries  had  been  placed,  four  of  us  went 
to  a  farm-house,  about  half  a  mile  distant,  and  asked  the  lady 
if  she  could  provide  us  a  supper.  She  said  she  could,  and  im- 
mediately set  about  it.  After  supper,  I  asked  her  what  was  to 
pay.  She  said,  "  Nothing."  I  left  the  money  on  the  table,  and 
we  departed.  We  had  strict  orders  not  to  take  any  thing  with- 
out paying  for  it,  and  in  all  cases  to  protect  women  and  children. 
Previous  to  our  trial,  this  woman  was  taken  to  Kingston,  to  see 
if  she  could  identify  any  of  us.  She  recognized  me  very  readily, 
but  when  she  told  the  inquisitors  of  my  leaving  the  money,  after 
she  had  declined  taking  it,  they  concluded  they  had  no  farther 
occasion  for  her  testimony,  and  she  was  sent  home,  never  more 
to  be  called  as  a  witness  against  us. 

In  the  evening,  finding  ourselves  deserted  by  General  Birge, 
we  elected  Colonel  Nicholas  Augustus  Sultuskie  Von  Shoultz 
our  commander-in-chief,  without  a  dissenting  vote.  He  accepted 
the  command,  and  made  a  brief  address,  in  which  he  avowed  his 
willingness  to  serve  us  in  any  capacity  in  which  he  could  be  use- 
ful, and  exhorted  us  to  be  true  to  the  noble  cause  of  liberty. 

Colonel  John  Kimball  was  appointed  aid  to  Colonel  Von 
Shoultz.  But,  discretion  bemg  "  the  better  part  of  valor,"  John 
deemed  it  prudent  to  make  a  retreat,  the  next  morning,  to  his 
home  in  Jefferson  county,  where  it  is  understood  he  arrived  in 
safety,  with  no  damage  except  tired  legs. 

A  scouting  party  was  kept  out  all  night,  to  report  the  first 
approach  of  an  enemy. 

During  that  night,  in  which  no  eye  slept,  we  could  but  realize 
that  our  situation  was  one  of  extreme  peril.  In  regard  to  the 
number  expected  to  join  us,  we  had  been  wofuUy  disappointed, 
and  of  those  who  had  startec^  with  us,  a  large  majority  had  ignobly 
deserted.  Our  leaders  had  also  proved  traitors  and  cowards. 
We  had  lost  much  of  our  ammunition.  Our  position  was  exposed 
to  attack,  both  by  land  and  water,  by  a  force  vastly  larger  than 
we  could  muster.  Amid  all  these  unfavorable  circumstances, 
foreboding  almost  certain  defeat,  there  was  no  repining,  no  wa- 
vering, no  flinching  from  the  contest,  on  the  part  of  the  resolute 
and  heroic  band  of  young  men  at  Windmill  Point.  A  braver 
company  never  shouldered  muskets. 


• 


'  i- 


mber  of 
lim  aller 

us  went 
the  lady 
,  and  im- 
t  was  to 
ible,  and 
ins  with- 
children, 
m,  to  see 
|r  readily, 


ley 


after 


o  farther 
iver  more 

al  Birge, 
\  Shoultz 
accepted 
rowed  his 
d  be  use- 
•erty. 
jnel  Von 
or,"  John 
ig,  to  his 
irrived  in 

;  the  first 

ut  realize 
ird  to  the 
appointed, 
id  ignobly 

cowards. 
is  exposed 
rger  than 
imstances, 
ig,  no  wa- 
le  resolute 

A  braver 


47 


CHAPTER   V. 

Approach  of  the  British  —  Unprotected  Females  shot  —  Battle 
OF  Prescott  —  Hard  Fighting  —  Deaths  of  Phillips,  Brown, 
Butterfeld,  and  Johnson  —  Capture  of  Daniel  George  and 
others  —  Wheelock  and  Finney  wounded — A  Stormy  Night  — 
Sufferings  of  the  Wounded —  The  Dead  on  the  Field  cf  Bat' 
tie  —  A  Visit  from  Ogdcnsburgh — Attempt  to  remove  the 
Wounded — An  Escape  —  Armistice  for  burying  the  Dead — 
The  Enemy  reinforced — Their  Compliments  returned — In- 
terference of  U.  S.  Officers  —  The  Surrender. 

On  the  morning  of  the  13th  of  November,  1838,  the  sun  rose 
clear  and  the  sky  was  cloudless.  A  little  after  sunrise,  we 
saw  the  long  line  of  British  soldiers  leave  Prescott,  on  their  way 
to  attack  us.  Soon  after,  three  armed  steamboats  came  down  the 
river,  from  Prescott,  and  anchored  opposite  the  windmill.  The 
soldiers  approached  us  obliquely,  until  they  arrived  in  front  of  our 
position,  about  three-fourths  of  a  mile  distant,  and  then  marched 
directly  upon  us.  Nothing  daunted  by  the  imposing  appear- 
ance of  the  enemy,  we  rallied  and  formed  a  line,  about  twenty 
rods  northwest  of  the  mill,  in  an  open  field  of  fifteen  or  twent) 
acres.  A  small  guard  was  left  in  charge  of  the  buildings,  making 
our  force  in  the  fiqid  only  about  180.  The  enemy  consisted  of 
the  83d  regiment  of  regulars,  under  Colonel  Dundas,  and  900 
volunteers,  under  Colonel  Frazer,  in  all  amounting  to  about 
1700.  The  83d  regiment  occupied  the  centre  of  their  line, 
which  was  formed  two  or  three  deep. 

On  the  approach  of  the  British  troops,  a  woman  and  her 
daughter,  eighteen  or  twenty  years  old,  who  lived  in  one  of  the 
houses  near  the  windmill,  left  their  home  to  go  into  the  country, 
to  a  place  of  safety.  When  the  fiendish  soldiers  came  within 
shooting  distance  of  these  unprotected  females,  they  fired  upon 
them,  killing  the  mother,  and  badly  wounding  the  daughter  in 
the  jaw.  This  unprovoked  and  barbarous  act  of  cruelty  would 
h^ve  disgraced  a  band  of  sivages.  In  the  course  of  the  next 
winter,  while  we  were  imprisoned  in  Fort  Henry,  the  daughter 
visited  us,  in  company  with  some  friends,  and  her  face  was  still 
bandaged  up,  in  consequence  of  the  wound  she  had  received. 

Our  line  was  formed  with  a  space  of  two  or  three  yards  be- 


#J 


! 

if 


f 


n 


48 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVF.NTimKS     OF 


t     I 


m 


twecn  the  men,  so  ns  to  cover  tl«c  enemy's  front.  We  marched 
toward  the  enemy,  until  we  were  within  about  thirty  rods  of 
their  line,  when  the  firing  was  commenced,  and  soon  became 
sharp  on  botli  sides.  On  our  side  every  map  loaded  and  fired  as 
fast  as  he  could,  and  fi)r  Monr.  than  TnnEE  nouns  we  maintain- 
ed our  ground,  and  poured  an  effectual  shower  of  bullets  into 
the  serried  ranks  of  that  hostile  army.  The  crack  of  our  rifles 
and  muskets  made  one  continuous  roar,  and  we  could  perceive 
the  enemy  falling  at  every  discharge.  Never  did  experienced 
veterans  fight  with  more  coolness,  precision,  and  dauntless 
bravery ;  and  it  is  useless  for  me  to  undertake  to  eulogize  the 
patriotic  young  men  who  thus  stood  before  ten  times  their  num- 
ber of  well-disciplined  British  soldiers,  and  for  upwards  of  three 
hours  returned  their  fire  with  deadly  effect,  without  the  least  in- 
clination to  abandon  the  field.  Neither  shall  I  attempt  to  do 
justice  to  the  gallant  hero  who  led  our  little  band  forth  to  meet 
the  Goliaths  of  Britain.  His  noble  bearing  in  that  hour  of  con- 
flict added  new  lustre  and  brightness  to  the  halo  of  glory  which 
surrounds  the  memory  of  Poland's  unfortunate  sons.  His  name 
shall  be  written  on  the  scroll  of  fame,  while  the  tyrants  of  the 
world  are  consigned  to  oblivion.* 

After  standing  before  our  galling  fire  as  long  as  they  thought 
prudent,  the  enemy  retreated  over  a  rise  of  ground.  We  follow- 
ed up  the  retreat,  until  we  discovered  a  movement  to  flank  us  on 
the  right  and  left,  made  with  a  view  to  cut  off*  our  retreat  to  the 
stone  buildings.  This  movement  was  partly  successful.  Thirty- 
three  of  our  men  were  thus  cut  off"  and  taken  prisoners.  This 
was  a  serious  loss,  as  it  took  about  one  sixth  of  our  force.  Our 
commander.  Colonel  Von  Shoultz,  then  ordered  a  retreat  to  the 
windmill.  The  enemy,  flushed  with  their  success  in  taking  the 
prisoners,  rallied  again,  and  made  a  desperate  but  unsuccessful 
attempt  to  drive  us  from  our  stronghold,  the  fortified  stone  build- 
ings.    They  were  effectually  repulsed. 

Before  we  abandoned  the  open  field,  and  while  in  pursuit  of 
the  enemy,  as  they  retreated  behind  the  rising  ground,  a  musket 
ball  was  shot  through  the  body  of  Captain  James  Phillips,  of  Og- 
densburgh,  killing  him  instantly.  Captain  John  Thomas,  who 
was  fighting  by  his  side,  has  since  related  to  me  the  particulars 
of  his  death.  Captain  Phillips  was  advancing  at  the  head  of  his 
men,  and  was  witliin  a  few  rods  of  the  83d  regiment,  urging  on 
his  followers,  who  were  pouring  a  brisk  and  deadly  fire  into  the 


non. 


A  spirited  engraving  uf  this  battle-scene  fronts  the  title-page. 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    U.    IIEUSTI8. 


40 


marched 
rods  of 
became 
1  fired  as 
iiaintain- 
lets  into 
)ur  rifles 
perceive 
erienced 
launtless 
gize  the 
eir  nuni- 
of  three 
least  in- 
pt  to  do 
to  meet 
r  of  con- 
ry  which 
lis  name 
ts  of  the 

J  thought 
e  follovv- 
nk  us  on 
at  to  the 
Thirty- 
s.  This 
:e.  Our 
tit  to  tlie 
king  the 
iiccessful 
lie  build- 

iirsuit  of 
I  musket 
s,  ofOg- 
nas,  who 
irticulars 
ad  of  his 
rging  on 
I  into  the 

re. 


ranks  of  the  enemy,  when  a  ball  struck  him,  and  he  fell  dead  on 
the  spot.  He  had  been  a  wealthy  farmer  in  Canada,  and  had 
lived  not  many  miles  from  the  spot  where  he  fell.  Eight  or  ten 
months  previous  to  the  time  of  his  death  he  had  been  compelled 
to  leave  Canada,  on  account  of  his  attachment  to  the  principles 
of  liberty.  His  fate  was  deeply  regretted  by  thousands  who  had 
known  his  worth.  His  age  was  thirty-eight,  and  he  left  a  family 
to  mourn  his  loss.  He  was  brave  and  fearless  in  the  fight,  and 
his  name  a;?d  deeds  will  long  live  in  the  memory  of  freedom's 
votaries. 

On  our  retreat  to  the  buildings,  I  saw  one  of  my  comrades  fall, 
only  a  short  distance  from  me.  At  first  I  thought  it  was  Colonel 
Woodruff.  I  went  to  the  spot  where  he  lay,  and  ascertained  it 
was  Charles  E.  Brown.  I  turned  him  over,  and  saw  that  he  was 
expiring.  He  was  pierced  with  two  balls,  one  through  the  head, 
and  the  other  through  the  breast.  I  was  obliged  to  leave  the 
body  on  the  field.  The  report  that  it  was  burned  in  a  barn  is 
not  true.  He  belonged  to  Brownville,  JefTerson  county,  and  was 
a  nephew  of  General  Brown,  a  distinguished  officer  in  the  last 
war.  He  was  a  fine  young  man,  being  only  about  twenty-four 
years  cM,  and  his  early  death  was  a  severe  affliction  to  his  parents 
and  friends.  The  bereaved  mother,  I  have  been  told,  lamented 
his  fall  with  that  deep  and  inconsolable  feeling  of  sorrow  which 
none  but  a  mother  can  experience. 

During  the  engagement.  Nelson  Butterfield  was  severely  wound- 
ed in  the  body.  His  comrades  bore  him  to  the  mill,  where  he 
lay  twelve  or  fourteen  hours,  in  the  most  excruciating  agony,  and 
then  death  came  to  his  relief,  every  attention  having  been  paid 
to  him  which  our  circumstances  would  permit.  He  was  from 
Philadelphia,  JefTerson  county,  and  belonged  to  a  highly  respect- 
able family.  His  age  was  about  twenty-two  years.  He  fought 
bravely,  and  met  his  fate  with  heroic  fortitude. 

The  road  leading  from  Prescott  to  Johnstown  ran  parallel  with 
the  river,  in  front  of  the  windmill.  Below  the  road,  four  or  five 
rods  from  the  mill,  on  a  small  eminence,  we  had  placed  a  can- 
non divested  of  drag  ropes,  to  decoy  the  enemy  into  an  attempt 
to  take  it.  It  was  designedly  stationed  so  that  its  captors  would 
encounter  a  raking  and  destructive  fire  from  the  stone  buildings, 
where  our  men  were  securely  posted.  Lieutenant  Johnson,  of 
the  83d  regiment,  advanced  into  the  road,  about  twenty  rods 
above  the  mill,  with  a  company  of  fifty  or  sixty  men,  and  bravely 
attempted  to  lead  them  up  to  the  assault.  He  was  considerably 
in  advance  of  his  company,  rushing  toward  the  prize,  and  calling 


m 


no 


CArnVllY      \M>     ADVKNTini.S     Ol' 


t   ^ 


'    I 


tm.  ! 


upon  his  moil  to  follow,  ulien  lie  was  shot  (lend,  rccoiviiig  three 
balls  in  his  body.  His  fojlowrrs  then  retreated  with  nil  pos«iblf5 
speed,  but  nearly  tin;  whole  company  were  cut  down  by  our 
sharp-shoolin'j  rillemon. 

It  has  since  been  chnrjrcd  upon  us,  in  British  papers,  that  we 
mutilated  the  body  of  Lieutenant  Johnson,  after  his  death.  This 
charge  is  totally  false.  His  body,  it  is  true,  was  left  on  the 
ground.  We  had  no  means  of  burying  the  dead,  and  from  the 
constant  firing  kept  up,  it  was  impossible,  in  most  instances,  to 
remove  the  bodies  from  the  field.  In  the  course  of  the  day, 
some  hogs,  running  loose  in  the  road,  were  seen  molesting  the 
remains  of  Lieutenant  Johnson.  Colonel  Von  Shoultz  imme- 
diately ordered  the  hogs  shot.  No  indignity  was  offered  to  the 
body  by  any  of  our  men.  His  sword  was  taken  by  L.  L.  Leach, 
iis  he  passed  the  body  in  going  from  the  mill  to  one  of  the  houses. 
Colonel  Von  Shoultz  presented  the  sword  to  me,  saying  that  my 
conduct  in  the  action  had  merited  it.  I  left  it  in  the  mill,  when 
we  surrendered,  where  it  undoubtedly  fell  into  the  hands  of  our 
oaptors. 

From  the  steamboats  on  the  river,  cannon  balls  and  shells 
were  tired  upon  us  in  the  principal  engagement,  and  at  intervals 
during  the  day,  but  not  with  much  effect.  These  boats  would 
occasionally  return  to  Prescott,  and  for  a  short  time  leave  the 
river  clear.  During  one  of  these  intervals,  Mr.  Daniel  George, 
with  three  or  four  others,  attempted  to  cross  the  river  to  Ogdens- 
burgh,  in  a  small  boat,  after  hospital  stores  for  the  wounded, 
which  were  very  much  needed.  No  sooner  did  they  make  their 
appearance  on  the  water  than  the  steamer  Experiment  started 
from  Prescott  in  pursuit.  Having  nothing  but  pieces  of  board 
to  paddle  across  with,  the  Experiment  overtook  them  before  they 
reached  the  opposite  shore,  but  not  before  they  were  in  American 
waters.  A  company  of  marines,  on  board  the  Experiment,  com- 
pletely riddled  the  boat  with  bullet  holes,  but  no  injury  was  done 
to  those  in  it.  They  were  ordered  on  board  the  Experiment. 
As  they  went  on  deck,  William  Gates,  of  Cape  Vincent  was 
struck  on  the  side  of  the  head,  by  a  stout  negro,  with  such  vio- 
lence as  to  prostrate  him.  The  steamer  then  put  back  to  Pres- 
cott, and  the  prisoners  were  confined  in  B'ort  Wellington. 

Among  the  wounded,  in  the  first  day's  fight,  were  two  young 
men  from  Watertown,  named  Munroe  Wheelock  and  Lorenzo 
E.  Finney.  They  were  machinists,  worked  together,  and  had 
both  enlisted  at  the  same  lime.  Wheelock  received  a  severe 
wound  in  the  thigh.     He  was  standing  almost  directly  behind 


(.'AI'TAIN     UAMEL     D.    IIElJSTIiH. 


51 


^  tliree 

by  our 

Lhnt  we 
,  This 
on  the 
oin  the 
ices,  to 
le  clay, 
iiig  the 

imine- 
1  to  the 

Leach, 
houses, 
that  my 
II,  when 
i  of  our 

d  shells 
ntervals 
I  would 
ave  the 
George, 
Dgdens- 
ounded, 
(e  their 

started 
board 
jre  they 
nerican 
it,  com- 
as done 

riment. 

nt,  was 
ich  vio- 

o  Pres- 

young 

■jorenzo 

nd  had 

severe 

behind 


% 


me  at  the  time,  and  the  ball  which  struck  him  pierced  my  coat 
on  the  left  side.  I  bound  up  his  wotind  with  a  handkerchief,  as 
well  ns  I  could,  and  carried  him  to  one  of  the  titone  houses  and 
laid  him  upon  some  hay,  where  ho  remained  four  days,  in  great 
distress,  which  we  could  do  nothing  to  alleviate.  Of  his  treat- 
ment after  our  surrender,  and  the  suspicious  circumstances  at- 
tending his  death  in  the  hospital,  I  will  speak  hereafter. 

His  companion,  Finney,  was  shot  through  the  body,  but  not 
mortally  wounded.  He  was  carried  to  one  of  the  stone  buildings, 
ulicre  he  remained  till  the  next  morning,  when  he  was  removed 
to  the  mill,  for  better  accommodations.  Here  I  did  every  thing 
in  tny  power  to  render  his  situation  as  comfortable  as  possible. 
Previously,  we  had  not  been  on  very  intimate  terms  of  friend- 
ship ;  but  when  I  saw  a  brave  comrade  in  distress,  all  thought 
of  past  difficulties  was  at  once  annihilated,  and  I  was  led  to  feel 
a  deep  interest  in  his  fate,  and  much  anxiety  to  relieve  his  suf- 
ferings. He  was  heroic  and  daring  on  the  field  of  battle,  and 
after  being  wounded  requested  his  companions,  if  he  died,  to  tell 
his  friends  he  did  not  die  a  coward.  His  age  was  twenty-one 
years.  His  removal  to  King^'  on,  recovery,  and  final  discharge, 
I  shall  allude  to  hereafter. 

In  the  afleruoon,  there  was  no  general  engagement,  but  there 
was  a  constant  firing  between  the  scouting  parties,  from  be- 
hind the  walls  and  trees  in  our  vicinity.  The  main  body  of  the 
enemy  kept  out  of  our  reach,  but  small  detachments  of  men  were 
constantly  reconnoitering  our  position,  and  whenever  they  ap- 
proached within  gun-shot  of  the  buildings,  or  of  the  men  who 
had  taken  position  behind  the  trees  and  walls,  they  were  sure  to 
meet  with  a  warm  reception. 

When  night  set  in,  a  cold  storm  of  sleet  and  snow  had  com- 
menced, and  was  increasing  in  violence.  This  added  much  to 
the  cheerless  and  desolate  prospect  before  us,  and  served  to  ren- 
der the  situation  of  the  wounded  still  more  uncomfortable.  We 
had  no  fires,  no  beds,  no  suitable  covering  for  the  unfortunate 
sufferers.  They  had  nothing  but  a  coucii  of  hay,  on  which  to 
puss  the  tedious  hours.  Amid  all  the  hopeless  circumstances 
with  which  we  were  surrounded,  our  greatest  anxiety  was  for  the 
relief  and  comfort  of  these  suffering  comrades.  It  would  be  im- 
possible to  describe  their  melancholy  condition.  They  endured 
their  pains  with  manly  fortitude,  and  with  very  little  complaint. 
An  occasional  sigh  or  groan  was  heard,  which  filled  our  hearts 
with  agony.  There  was  little  opportunity  or  disposition  to  sleep 
that  night.     Yet,  all  things  considered,  our  gallant  little  band 


rfiy 


1" 

■I 
it. 


52 


CAPTIVITY    AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


^1 


exhibited  great  courage  and  cheerfulness.  There  was  no  fear  or 
quailing  manifested.  We  felt  conscious  of  having  struck  a  blow 
in  the  cause  of  freedom,  which,  if  not  completely  successful, 
would  at  least  save  us  from  the  disgraceful  reputation  of  being 
afraid  of  the  British  lion.  With  all  the  dark  prospect  before  us, 
we  had  no  anxiety  to  exchange  situations  with  the  cowards  who 
had  deserted  before  they  got  within  sight  of  the  enemy,  and  who 
had  that  day  stood  upon  the  opposite  bank  of  the  St.  Lawrence, 
to  cheer  us  on  in  the  fight !     We  knew  that 

"  Freedom's  battle,  once  begun. 
Bequeathed  from  bleeding  sire  to  eon. 
Though  baffled  oft,  is  always  won." 

The  morning  of  the  14th,  (Wednesday,)  dawned  upon  us  in 
gloom  and  sadness.  Constant  excitement,  severe  toil,  scanty 
provisions,  and  loss  of  rest  and  sleep,  had  been  our  experience 
ever  since  we  left  Sackett's  Harbor.  We  began  to  feci  the  bad 
effects  arising  from  such  long-continued  exertions  and  privations. 
The  storm  of  snow  and  rain  continued  to  beat  upon  us  with  its 
desolating  fury.  The  broad  field  before  us  was  thickly  strewed 
with  the  bodies  of  the  dead,  over  which  the  storm  had  spread  a 
covering  of  snow,  which  was  their  only  shroud.  Hundreds  thus 
lay  exposed  to  the  "  peltings  of  the  pitiless  storm,"  yet  they  were 
all  resting  in  the  quiet  sleep  of  death !  Their  race  was  run ! 
Their  eyes  were  forever  closed  upon  the  world !  Friends  and 
enemies  were  all  alike  to  them !  The  sight  of  such  a  battle- 
field is  well  calculated  to  awaken  peculiar  emotions.  My  pen 
is  inadequate  to  portray  the  scene. 

The  first  demonstration  against  us,  on  the  second  day,  was 
from  several  floating  batteries  on  the  river,  which  opened  a  brisk 
cannonade  on  the  buildings.  Almost  simultaneously  a  battery 
was  opened  upon  us  from  the  land,  in  front.  The  firing  contin- 
ued a  few  hours,  without  making  any  impression.  The  guns 
were  not  heavy  enough  to  batter  down  the  thick  walls  by  which 
we  were  protected. 

A  company  of  regulars  and  volunteers,  to  the  number  of 
eighty  or  more,  took  possession  of  a  stone  house  in  our  vicinity, 
which  enabled  them  to  annoy  us  considerably.  Colonel  Von 
Shoultz  quickly  perceived  that  the  enemy  would  reap  important 
advantages  from  the  occupation  of  that  house,  and  he  determined 
to  dislodge  them.  With  a  detachment  of  eleven  men,  and  a 
small  cannon,  he  went  out  to  attack  the  house.  The  occupants, 
when  they  saw  our  intrepid  leader  approaching,  with  his  handful 


'i 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.    IIEUSTIS. 


53 


was 


of  men,  retreated  through  the  back  door,  and  decamped,  in  double 
quick  time.  The  front  door  of  the  house  being  fastened,  Solo- 
mon Reynolds  and  John  Thomas  were  the  first  to  break  through 
it.  In  their  hasty  flight,  the  enemy  left  Joseph  Norris,  one  of 
our  men,  whom  they  had  previously  secured  as  a  prisoner.  Not 
having  any  men  to  spare,  to  fortify  the  house.  Colonel  Von 
Shoultz  ordered  it  to  be  set  on  fire.  It  belonged  to  a  tory, 
named  Frazer. 

As  on  the  previous  day,  there  was  a  scattering  fire  kept  up 
between  the  outposts,  but  nothing  of  special  importance  trans- 
pired before  night. 

In  the  evening,  a  boat  came  over  from  Ogdensburgh,  and  two 
or  three  men  came  on  shore.  They  had  an  interview  with 
Colonel  Von  Shoultz,  and  asked  him  which  he  would  prefer,  a 
boat  to  take  us  away,  or  a  reinforcement  of  600  men.  The 
gallant  reply  was,  "  Send  us  600  men,  .ind  we  will  get  away  our- 
selves." Our  commander  intreated  them  to  send  over  a  boat  to 
take  away  the  wounded.  This  they  agreed  to  do,  and  said  we 
had  better  carry  them  down  to  the  shore,  that  there  might  be  no 
delay  in  getting  them  on  board.  According  to  request,  we  con- 
veyed the  wounded  to  the  water's  edge,  where  they  remained 
two  or  tliree  hours,  unsheltered  from  the  cold  storm,  waiting  the 
arrival  of  the  boat.  While  they  were  lying  in  this  condition,  the 
steamer  Paul  Pry  approached  as  near  the  shore  as  she  could, 
safely,  there  being  danger  of  getting  aground.  In  letting  ofT 
steam  she  made  a  great  noise,  which  being  heard  at  Prescott,  the 
British  steamers  immediately  came  down  the  river,  and  the  Paul 
Pry  paddled  into  Ogdensburgh,  in  desperate  haste.  On  whom 
the  blame  of  this  bad  management  ought  to  rest,  I  have  not  the 
means  of  deciding. 

With  heavy  hearts  we  carried  the  wounded  back  to  the  mill. 
I  will  leave  the  reader  to  imagine  with  what  feelings  they  were 
again  transferred  to  their  uncomfortable  pallets.  They  had  in- 
dulged the  delusive  hope  of  being  taken  to  the  opposite  shore, 
where  they  would  have  been  warmly  greeted,  and  where  their 
wounds  would  have  been  properly  dressed,  and  every  effort  which 
friendship  and  sympathy  could  devise,  would  have  been  made  to 
alleviate  their  sufferings.  But,  alas !  they  were  doomed  to  dis- 
a|)j)ointment.     The  cup  of  bitterness  was  not  yet  full. 

The  600  men  who  were  to  come  to  our  assistance,  if  they  ever 
started  must  have  taken  a  circuitous  route,  for  we  have  never 
yet  seen  them.  A  wise  discretion  probably  kept  their  ardor 
cooled  down.     They  might  have  read  of  the  renowned  exploit 


f! 

I 

(if 


III 

1;S 


I 

If 


\i 


54 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


of  Don  Quixotte  de  la  Mancha,  in  attacking  a  windmill,  and 
learned  from  it  a  useful  moral,  namely,  to  keep  out  of  the  way 
of  all  such  hideous-looking  objects.  And,  as  a  reward  for  their 
prudence,  like  the  faithful  squire,  Sancho  Panza,  each  one  of 
them  ought  to  be  made  governor  of  an  island.  The  "  Thousand 
Isles  "  in  the  St.  Lawrence,  would  afford  them  an  ample  field  to 
display  their  valor. 

On  Thursday,  the  15th,  in  the  aflernoon,  the  enemy  received 
some  thirty-two  pounders,  from  Kingston,  with  which  to  renew 
the  cannonade  on  our  stone  buildings.  Before  they  got  them 
on  to  the  ground,  however,  we  killed  one  of  their  wheel  horses 
with  a  cannon  ball,  and  cut  away  the  whiffletree,  at  which  the 
leaders  became  frightened,  and  ran  away.  The  attempt  to  get 
the  guns  on  to  the  field,  that  night,  was  then  abandoned. 

This  was  the  third  day  we  had  held  out  against  the  enemy. 
Yet  no  succor  came.  We  still  fought  on,  vi^ith  no  intention  of 
surrendering,  so  long  as  we  had  ammunition  and  provisions. 

Thursday  night  our  force  consisted  of  only  117  men  able  for 
service,  as  was  ascertained  by  actual  count. 

A  proposition  was  made  to  me,  at  this  time,  by  two  men  who 
had  determined  to  cross  the  river,  in  an  old  canoe  they  had 
found,  to  go  with  them,  as  they  could  carry  one  more.  I  de- 
clined the  offer,  in  the  presence  of  my  comrades,  and  they  took 
another  man,  and  the  three  escaped.  I  did  not  blame  them. 
They  had  fought  well,  and  seeing  no  other  chance  of  escape,  and 
no  prospect  of  doing  any  good  if  they  remained,  they  decided 
to  retreat.  I  had  induced  several  brave  young  men  to  join  in 
this  hazardous  enterprise,  and  I  would  not  forsake  them.  I  pre- 
ferred to  stay  and  share  their  fortunes. 

On  Friday  morning,  the  16th,  the  steamboats  came  down  from 
Prescott,  and  made  another  attempt  to  batter  down  the  windmill 
and  other  stone  buildings ;  and  the  thirty-two  pounders,  on  the 
field,  also  opened  upon  us  a  vigorous  and  heavy  cannonade. 
This  firing  was  kept  up  till  one  o'clock,  in  the  aflernoon,  but  with 
no  perceptible  effect. 

At  one  o'clock,  a  white  flag  was  seen  approaching  us.  Leman 
L.  Leach  was  sent  out  to  meet  it.  The  enemy  asked  for  one 
hour's  cessation  of  firing,  which  was  granted.  During  the  ar- 
mistice, we  mingled  freely  with  the  British  soldiers,  on  the  field, 
collecting  the  bodies  of  the  dead.  In  removing  the  bodies,  it 
was  no  uncommon  thing  for  the  enemy  to  assist  us,  and  for  us, 
in  return,  to  assist  them.  While  thus  encraaed,  Colonel  Frazer, 
of  the  volunteers,  communicated  with  some  of  our  men  by  the 


I 


CAPTAIN     DANIF.L     I).    IlEUSTIS. 


55 


and  I         secret  signs  used  in  our  lodges,  he  having  been  a  member  in 

Canada.  He  said,  in  my  hearing,  that  if  we  had  come  with  as 
strong  a  force  as  was  expected,  he  should  have  joined  us  with 
500  men ;  but,  as  it  was,  he  was  compelled  to  fight  us  with  900. 

Two  of  the  enemy's  wounded  men,  one  of  them  a  brother  to 
Colonel  Frazer,  were  picked  up  and  brought  to  our  head-quar- 
ters, where  we  paid  them  all  the  attention  in  our  power.  Colonel 
Von  Shoultz  sent  word  to  their  commander  to  come  and  get 
them,  as  we  had  not  the  means  of  dressing  their  wounds.  They 
were  accordingly  removed  to  their  own  camp. 

When  the  hour  was  out  the  firing  was  renewed  by  the  enemy. 
Colonel  Dundas  had  then  received  a  reinforcement  of  another 
regiment  from  Kingston,  making  the  whole  force  brought  into 
I  the  field  against  us,  as  near  as  can  be  ascertained,  not  far  from 
2600,  besides  the  armed  steamboats  and  floating  batteries  on  the 
river. 

We  had  now  fired  away  all  our  cannon-balls.  In  this  emer- 
gency we  contrived  to  load  our  pieces,  a  few  times,  with  links 
of  chains  and  scraps  of  old  iron.  The  enemy  were  so  very  ac- 
..  mraodating  as  to  send  us,  occasionally,  a  ball  which  exactly 
.tited  our  six-pounder.  We  lost  no  time  in  returning  all  such 
compliments  to  the  British,  and  invariably  **  gave  them  as  good 
as  they  sent."  Our  brave  boys  did  not  wait  for  that  ball  to  stop 
rolling,  before  they  started  in  pursuit  of  it ;  and  we  hurled  it  back 
with  more  precision  and  effect  than  it  had  been  sent  to  us.  In 
some  instances  we  could  perceive  that  it  did  good  execution. 

The  steamboat  Telegraph,  with  Colonel  Worth  and  two  com- 
panies of  United  States  troops  on  board,  was  constantly  cruising 
up  and  down  the  river,  to  prevent  any  succor  from  reaching  us. 
In  fact,  every  possible  exertion  had  been  made,  by  the  United 
States  authorities,  to  thwart  and  defeat  us.  In  view  of  the  out- 
rageous insults  we  had  received,  as  a  nation,  from  the  British 
tories  in  Canada,  we  did  think  this  extreme  vigilance,  on  the 
part  of  the  United  States  government,  in  harassing  the  friends 
of  Canadian  liberty,  altogether  unworthy  of  republican  America 
Had  the  poor  Malays,  or  the  barbarous  inhabitants  of  some  re- 
mote island,  or  the  feeble  savage  tribes  in  our  southern  and 
western  wilds,  or  even  the  contemptible  Mexicans,  perpetrated 
an  outrage  equal  in  enormity  to  the  burning  of  the  Caroline, 
even  though  provoked  to  it  by  flagrant  acts  of  wrong  on  our  part, 
the  whole  naval  and  military  force  of  the  country  would  have 
been  in  readiness  to  avenge  the  insult !  But,  in  this  case,  troops 
were  sent  to  the  frontier,  not  to  punish  our  insatiate  foe,  but  to 


;^ii 


^1 


■  Jiff 


56 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OP 


k- 


I  ■'. 


ri 


i  'i 


y  i 


. !('  -;: 


assist  her  in  crushing  the  republican  spirit  which  threatened  to 
uproot  British  power  in  Canada ! 

When  Texas  rebelJed  against  the  government  of  Mexico, 
thousands  of  American  citizens  crossed  the  lines,  and  assisted 
in  achieving  her  independence.  They  went  and  returned,  as 
they  pleased,  without  molestation  from  the  government  of  the 
United  States.  Yet  the  contest  in  Texas  was  not  so  much  a 
struggle  for  freedom  as  that  in  Canada. 

Hunter  C.  Vaughn,  one  of  the  fearless  band  at  Windmill 
Point,  was  a  son  of  Captain  Vaughn,  of  the  steamer  Telegraph. 
He  went  down  to  the  shore,  and  seeing  his  father  pacing  fore 
and  afl  on  the  deck,  waved  a  handkerchief  to  him.  The  father 
recognized  his  son,  but  could  do  nothing  for  him  !  His  boat  was 
in  the  service  of  the  United  States !  It  was  with  the  greatest 
difficulty,  as  we  afterwards  learned,  that  the  troops  could  be  re- 
strained from  rushinor  to  our  assistance. 

Towards  night,  Colonel  Abbey,  in  view  of  our  exhausted  and 
critical  situation,  went  to  Colonel  Von  Shoultz  and  advised  n 
surrender.  Our  commander  told  him  to  do  as  he  thought  best, 
himself,  but  by  no  means  to  encourage  others  to  lay  down  their 
arras.  Colonel  Abbey  then  returned  to  the  mill,  and  told  the 
men  not  to  surrender,  but  to  hold  out  till  the  last  moment,  in 
the  hope  of  receiving  assistance.  He  then  went  to  the  enemy 
and  surrendered.  He  afterwards  averred  that  his  object  in  so 
doing  was  to  save  the  lives  of  the  brave  and  gallant  young  men. 
He  said  he  told  the  enemy  what  commission  he  held,  and  did 
not  expect  to  save  himself.  But,  however  good  the  motive  may 
have  been,  this  step  on  the  part  of  Colonel  Abbey  was  a  very  un- 
fortunate one.  It  made  the  enemy  acquainted  with  our  situation, 
and  produced  an  unfavorable  cftect  upon  our  men.  It  is  my 
opinion  that  we  should  have  held  out  some  time  longer,  if  the 
course  of  Colonel  Abbey  had  been  different. 

About  four  o'clock,  the  British  force,  at  the  sound  of  the  bu- 
gle, advanced  in  solid  columns,  with  the  evident  intention  of 
St  "nuing  our  fortress.  A  consultation  was  then  held  by  the  offi- 
cers in  the  mill,  not  including  Colonel  Von  Shoultz,  who  was 
defending  one  of  the  houses.  It  was  thought  by  some  that  farther 
resistance  would  be  in  vain,  and  that  many  lives  might  be  saved 
by  a  surrender.  Others  were  for  holding  out  longer.  It  was 
finally  agreed  to  send  out  a  flag  of  truce,  to  know  on  what  terms 
Colonel  Dundas  would  receive  our  surrender.  This  flag  was 
borne  by  Colonel  Woodruff,  accompanied  by  myself  and  two 
others.     We  had  not  proceeded  more  than  four  or  five  rods  be- 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    IIKUSTIS. 


&7 


^ 


ft»rc  we  were  fired  upon.  We  then  returned  to  the  mill.  The 
iimrdcrous  disposition  evinced  by  the  enemy,  in  firing  upon  un- 
armed men,  bearing  a  white  flag,  was  well  calculated  to  arouse 
Icclings  of  indignation  in  every  generous  bosom;  for,  only  a  few 
hours  before,  they  had  sent  a  similar  flag  to  us,  which  had  been 
respected. 

Htill,  considering  our  entire  destitution  of  cannon-balls,  and 
the  overpowering  force  that  surrounded  us,  it  was  thought  by 
many  that  no  eifectual  resistance  could  much  longer  be  main- 
tained. After  discussing  the  matter  a  short  time,  a  general  sur- 
rtMidcr  was  reluctantly  decided  upon.  We  then  marched  out  of 
the  mill,  in  a  body,  still  holding  out  the  white  flag. 

When  Captain  Sandum,  commanding  on  the  river,  saw  our 
white  flag  fired  upon,  he  immediately  landed  his  men,  with  the 
determination,  as  he  afterwards  testified  on  our  trial,  if  the  act 
had  been  repeated,  of  firing  upon  those  who  committed  the  out- 
rage. We  surrendered  to  hini,  and  the  83d  regiment  then  open- 
in;'  to  the  right  and  lefl:,  we  were  marched  in  between  the  lines 
and  surrounded.  We  were  very  soon  robbed  of  our  money, 
watches,  caps,  clothes,  and  every  thing  our  ferocious  captors 
roiiid  lay  their  hands  upon,  leaving  some  half  naked,  while  every 
kind  of  insult  was  offered  to  us. 

Alexander  Wright,  a  Canadian  by  birth,  but  who  had  been 
living  at  Ogdensburgh,  refused  to  surrender,  saying  he  knew 
the  gallows  would  be  his  fate.  He  was  instantly  shot  down,  and 
Htnhhed  through  the  heart  with  bayonets.  John  Morrisett,  be- 
longing to  Lower  Canada,  was  stabbed  in  the  side  with  a  bay- 
onet, and  cut  on  the  shoulder  with  a  sword,  but  not  mortally 
wounded. 

The  following  extract  from  a  letter,  written  by  Colonel  Von 
Slioultz,  while  in  Fort  Henry,  to  J.  R.  Parker,  Esq.,  of  Oswego, 
will  show  how  nobly  he  mai  ttained  his  ground  to  the  last: — 

"  Friday,  at  about  mid-^day,  a  parley  came  from  the  British, 
for  the  purpose  of  taking  away  the  killed  that  remained  on  the 
field,  and  I  delivered  over  to  him  the  British  wounded  I  had 
taken  up,  as  I  had  no  medical  stores  of  any  kind,  and  it  would 
have  been  a  base  and  unmanly  policy  to  augment  the  sufferings 
of  the  wounded  enemy.  One  hour's  cessation  of  hostilities  was 
granted,  for  burying  our  dead;  but,  having  no  shovels,  we  could 
not  do  it.  When  the  time  was  out,  the  British  steamers  came 
down  with  heavy  artillery,  and  the  battle  began.  As  I  could  get 
no  one  to  take  the  defence  of  the  house  on  our  lefl;  flank,  \  went 
there  myself  with  ten  men.  As  I  had  suspected,  that  hous&was 
3* 


tf. . 


fi 

■i 

u 


€:r 


w  h 


i  ■ 


58 


ADVENTURES     OF    CAPTAIN     HEIISTIS. 


most  strenuously  attacked.  From  the  situation  of  the  house,  I 
was  not  able  to  see  how  it  went  on  in  the  other  houses  and  the 
mill.  We  must  have  been  surrounded  by  at  least  two  thousand 
men,  and  a  detachment  of  the  83d  regiment.  My  whole  num- 
ber of  men,  when  this  last  battle  began,  was  one  hundred  and 
eight.  I  kept  my  position,  though  the  roof  crumbled  to  pieces 
over  our  heads,  by  the  British  fire  from  their  artillery,  until  dark, 
when  I  was  informed  that  all  had  surrendered.  I  also  then  sur- 
rendered. I  was  stripped  to  the  shirt  sleeves  by  the  militia.  I 
lost  my  watch,  trunk,  money,  and  the  clothing  I  had  on. 

"  We  are  tried  by  court-martial !  I  have  had  my  trial ;  am 
prepared  for  death." 

All  the  buildings  we  had  occupied,  except  the  windmill,  were 
immediately  set  on  fire.  That  was  spared,  probably,  on  account 
of  a  report  we  had  circulated  that  a  large  quantity  of  powder 
was  secreted  in  it. 

Leonard  Root,  of  Sackett's  Harbor,  refused  to  surrender,  but 
hid  himself  in  the  oven  of  one  of  the  houses,  and  perished  in  the 
flames. 

While  the  soldiers  were  setting  fire  to  one  of  the  houses,  an 
officer  went  up  stairs,  and  the  flames  made  such  rapid  progress 
that  he  was  unable  to  descend.  He  went  to  a  window  and 
called  upon  his  men  to  assist  him  down.  They  answered,  **  Yes, 
d — n  you,  we'll  help  you  down,"  and  instantly  shot  him  dead, 
supposing  him  to  be  one  of  our  men. 

Thus  ended  the  battle  of  Prescoit.  Four  days,  from  Tuesday 
morning  till  Friday  evening,  we  stood  our  ground  manfully. 
Having  been  an  humble  actor  in  the  scene,  I  may  have  already 
transgressed  the  rules  of  propriety,  in  speaking  of  the  heroes  of 
that  battle.  If  I  had  no  higher  motive  than  to  indulge  a  vain 
and  boasting  spirit  of  self-glorification,  it  would  indeed  be  wise 
for  me  to  keep  silent.  But  justice  has  never  been  done  to  the 
memory  of  the  gallant  Americans  who  fell  on  that  hard-fought 
field,  and  it  becomes  my  duty  to  speak  in  their  behalf,  as  well 
as  in  behalf  of  those  who  experienced  the  tortures  of  a  living 
death,  in  the  custody  of  British  tyrants.  Doctor  Theller,  in 
speaking  of  our  little  band  of  warriors,  says,  '*  Their  gallant 
bearing  will  live  i'  ^''story.  The  poets  of  the  age  will  rehearse 
their  deeds.  They  le  an  honor  to  human  nature,  and  a  credit 
to  the  American  nr  h 


' 


1) 


3t  .■»  ,■'  i 


"    '!**• 


••  Jr 


n« 


house,  I 
}  and  the 
thousand 
ole  num- 
dred  and 
to  pieces 
ntil  dark, 
then  sur- 
nilitia.  I 
1. 
trial ;   am 

mill,  were 
n  account 
)f  powder 


nder,  but 
lied  in  the 


louses,  an 
I  progress 
ndow  and 
Bd,  "  Yes, 
lim  dead, 

I  Tuesday 
manfully, 
re  already 
heroes  of 
ge  a  vain 
d  be  wise 
ne  to  the 
ird-fought 
f,  as  well 

a  living 
heller,  in 
ir  gallant 

rehearse 
I  a  credit 


CHAPTER  VI. 

The,  March  to  Prcscott —  Tortures  of  the  Wounded —  The  PaS' 
sage  to  Kingston  —  Confinement  in  Fort  Henry  —  The  Names, 
Age,  and  Residence  of  the  Heroes  of  Prescott  —  List  of  the 
Killed  and  Wounded — Loss  oj  '/>■  Enemy  —  Money  sent  to 
the  Prisoners  by  their  Friends  —  Filthy  Bread — Robbery  — 
Style  of  Living  —  A  Christmas  Present  —  Trial  and  Ezecu- 
tion  of  Von  Shoultz  —  Incidents  in  his  Romantic  Career. 

It  was  past  sundown  when  we  surrendered,  and  considerable 
time  was  occupied  in  making  the  arrangements  for  our  march  to 
Prescott.  The  robbery,  of  which  I  have  before  spoken,  was  so 
speedily  and  eifectualiy  done,  that  very  little  delay  resulted  from 
that  operation.  Never  did  a  band  of  wild  Arabs  plunder  their 
victims  with  more  ravenous  ferocity. 

We  were  marched  in  couples,  with  a  line  of  soldiers,  of  the 
83d,  on  each  side,  to  guard  us  safely.  All  the  wounded  who 
could  possibly  go  on  foot,  with  the  assistance  of  their  comrades, 
were  made  to  do  so.  Lorenzo  E.  Finney,  to  whom  I  have  be- 
fore alluded,  as  having  been  wounded  on  the  first  day,  was  sup- 
ported on  one  side  by  his  young  friend,  Charles  F.  Crossman, 
and  on  the  other  by  myself.  He  had  been  robbed  of  his  coat 
and  boots,  and  had  lain  three  days  and  a  half  without  having  his 
wound  dressed ;  yet  he  was  compelled  to  walk,  through  mud  and 
snow,  the  distance  of  one  mile  and  a  half.  He  bore  his  suffer- 
ings and  hard  treatment  with  uncomplaining  fortitude.  He 
was  conveyed  to  the  hospital  at  Kingston,  and  was  kept  in  con- 
finement till  the  next  spring,  when  he  was  discharged  without  a 
trial,  having  nearly  recovered  from  his  wound.  He  is  now  living 
*  at  Watertown,  where  I  had  the  pleasure  of  meeting  him  afler  my 
return  from  captivity.    ^ 

Monroe  Wheelock,  whom  I  have  before  mentioned  among  the 
wounded,  was  in  like  manner  compelled  to  walk  to  Prescott, 
supported  by  two  of  his  comrades.  He  was  wounded  on  the  first 
day  of  the  siege,  and  had  been  in  great  distress  ever  since. 
During  the  march  he  suffered  extreme  torture,  his  wound  being 
in  the  thigh,  and  his  agonizing  shrieks  would  have  touched  the 
nearts  of  our  captors,  if  they  had  not  been  dead  to  all  the  finer 


*l 


til 


GO 


CATTIVITV     AND     ADVKNTUKGS     OF 


- 


l::1 


:)  ' 


feelings  of  humanity.  He  '.Mgered  a  few  days  in  the  hospital,  at 
Kingston,  and  then  expired.  There  were  some  mysterious  cir- 
cumstances attending  his  death,  which  gave  rise  to  a  suspicion, 
in  the  mmds  of  hi?  room-mates,  that  he  had  been  poisoned.  He 
was  a  double-joir led  man,  very  strong  a'.d  muscular,  and  it  was 
conjectured  ♦hat  the  physici?  ^s  »vanted  his  body  for  anatomical 
purposes.  This  conjecture  was  strengthened  by  the  fact  that 
when  his  father  went  and  asked  for  his  body,  they  refused  to  give 
it  up !  His  age  was  about  twenty-three  years,  and  his  death  was 
deeply  lamented. 

We  were  paraded  through  the  village  of  Prescott,  where  the 
tories  had  their  houses  illuminated  in  honoi  of  the  great  victory. 
In  the  streets,  a  vile  set  of  wretches  amused  themselves  with  try- 
ing to  insult  and  abuse  us.  Such  is  British  magnanimity !  The 
meanest  of  all  mean  things,  is  to  take  advantage  of  the  r^werless 
condition  of  a  fallen  foe,  to  needlessly  aggravate  his  s.      .ings. 

When  we  had  been  duly  exhibited  to  the  populace  of  Prescott, 
the  next  step  was  to  cram  us  all  into  the  forecastle  of  a  small 
steamboat,  which  required  pretty  hard  squeezing,  the  space  not 
being  sufficient  for  us  to  lie  or  sit  down,  except  a  few  at  a  time. 
Here  we  had  the  wounded  in  our  midst,  and  very  soon  the  air 
became  exceedingly  foul  and  unwholesome,  in  consequence  of 
being  breathed  over  so  many  times,  unrenewed  by  ventilation. 
Faintness,  headache,  and  other  complaints,  were  now  added  to 
extreme  exhaustion,  both  of  mind  and  body.  Altogether,  our 
situation  was  such  that  death  would  have  been  a  happy  relief. 
This,  however,  was  but  a  foretaste  of  the  sufferings  in  store  for  us. 

At  the  time  of  the  surrender,  Colonel  Von  Shoultz  and  Cap- 
tain John  Thomas  escaped  to  the  bank  of  the  river,  and  con- 
cealed themselves  beneath  some  shrubs,  where,  after  considera- 
ble search,  they  were  discovered  by  the  militia  left  behind  to 
scour  the  neighborhood. 

Colonel  Von  Shoultz  was  known  to  have  been  our  commander, 
and  the  vilest  treatment  was  awarded  him.  His  hands  were  tied 
behind  his  back,  and,  amid  jeers  and  scoffs,  he  was  escorted  to 
the  steamer  at  Prescott.  As  he  went  on  board,  one  of  the  offi- 
cers told  him  that  he  would  be  hung  the  next  morning,  at  three 
o'clock.  Our  hero  replied  that  death  had  stared  him  m  the  face 
quite  often,  and  he  would  endeavor  to  secure  a  little  rest,  as  he 
had  had  none  for  four  nights.  He  sat  down,  with  his  hands 
still  tied  behind  him,  and  immediately  fell  asleep.  On  waking 
up,  at  four  or  five  o'clock  in  the  morning,  he  remarked,  with  an 
air  of  indifference,  "  I  declare  they  must  have  forgotten  me." 


i  .! 


CAPTAIN     UANIKI.     D.    IIKUSTIS. 


et 


\ 


I 


It  is  just  eight  years,  to  a  day,  since  we  left  Windmill  Point, 
fhat  I  find  myself  engaged  in  writing  this  page  of  history.  In 
those  eight  years  what  indescribable  sufferings  and  hardships  I 
have  witnessed  and  experienced  !  Far  preferable  would  it  have 
been  to  have  fallen  on  the  field  of  battle,  in  the  thickest  of  the 
fight,  than  to  have  endured  the  tortures  I  shall  vainly  attempt  to 
describe  in  succeeding  pages. 

Every  man  of  us  was  searched,  in  the  hope  of  finding  papers 
that  would  assist  in  convicting  us.  As  we  had  taken  the  pre- 
caution to  destroy  all  such  documents,  the  search  was  not  very 
successful.  I  happened  to  have  in  one  of  my  pockets,  two  let- 
ters from  Bill  Johnson,  in  one  of  which  he  requested  me  to  raise 
fifty  men  and  send  them  to  him,  at  Grindstone  Island.  I  was 
not  aware  that  I  had  these  letters  with  me,  and  in  the  search 
they  were  overlooked.  The  next  day,  on  our  passage  to  Kings- 
ton, I  discovered  and  destroyed  them.  If  these  letters  had  been 
secured,  my  fate  might  have  been  different. 

That  night,  sitting  on  the  floor,  and  leaning  my  back  against 
that  of  a  fellow-prisoner,  I  enjoyed  a  little  of  "  tired  nature's 
sweet  restorer,  balmy  sleep,"  it  being  the  first  time  I  had  thrown 
myself  fully  into  the  arms  of  Morpheus  since  leaving  Sackett's 
Harbor. 

The  next  morning,  Saturday,  November  17th,  we  started  for 
Kingston,  still  being  closely  imprisoned  in  the  crowded  and  un< 
wholesome  forecastle.  Nothing  was  furnished. us  to  eat  until  af- 
ternoon, when  some  half-boiled  fresh  beef,  without  a  particle  of 
salt,  bread,  or  potato,  was  brought  down  to  us.  It  was  such 
miserable  stuff  that  we  could  not  eat  it,  notwithstanding  we  had 
been  so  long  without  food.  I  had  eaten  nothing  but  a  few  haid 
biscuits  since  Tuesday  evening,  when  I  took  supper  at  the  farm- 
house, and  the  sight  of  this  meat  made  me  sick. 

It  was  about  midnight  when  we  arrived  at  Kingston.  We 
were-  tied  together,  in  couples.  Von  Shoultz  at  the  head,  and  a 
rope,  passing  between  us,  united  us  all  in  the  bonds  of  hemp ! 
In  this  condition,  with  a  line  of  soldiers  on  each  side,  we  were 
marched  to  Fort  Henry,  about  one  mile  distant  from  the  landing, 
the  band  playing  Yankee  Doodle.  During  this  march  we  were 
subjected  to  the  foulest  abuse  from  the  spectators,  pelted  with 
clubs,  and  spit  upon  with  impunity.  Our  heroic  leader  was 
struck  with  a  stake  on  the  hip,  which  caused  a  lameness  from 
which  he  never  recovered.  J.  H.  Martin  and  myself,  being  near 
together,  were  struck  by  men  whom  we  knew,  and  who  may  yet 
have  occasion  to  repent. 


W 


63 


CAI'TIVITY     AND     ADVUNTLItE!) 


n 

,1 


The  wounded  wcro  «eiit  to  tho  hospital,  and  the  rest  of  us 
were  shut  up  in  three  rooms,  coininuni 'gating  with  each  other. 

The  next  day,  in  the  forenoon,  a  quarter  of  beef,  weighing 
about  100  pounds,  was  thrown  into  our  room,  with  a  biscuit  for 
each  man,  there  being  105  men  to  feed.  No  materials  for  cut- 
ting up  or  cooking  our  meat  were  furnished  us.  All  our  pocket- 
knives  had  been  taken  from  us,  as  was  supposed,  but  it  so  hap- 
pened that  J.  II.  Martin  had  managed  to  keep  one.  It  was  a 
little,  old,  Connecticut  knife,  with  a  wood  handle.  As  I  had 
been  a  butcher,  it  devolved  upon  me,  as  a  matter  of  etiquette,  to 
carve  the  quarter  of  beef.  I  endeavored  to  cut  it  into  as  many 
pieces  as  we  had  mouths,  and  then  each  one  took  his  portion, 
some  eating  it  entirely  raw,  and  others  warming  theirs  on  an  old 
box  stove.  This  was  all  we  had  to  eat  that  day.  Queen  Victo 
ria's  boarding-house,  on  the  whole,  afforded  rather  poor  accom- 
modations. 

On  the  morning  of  the  13th,  when  the  battle  first  commenced, 
we  had  (ynly  180  men.  Four  of  these  ran  away  without  fighting 
at  all.  Five  others,  who  had  fought  gallantly,  made  their  escape 
previous  to  our  capture.     Their  names  were  Junah  WoodrulT, 

William  Hathaway ,  Benjamin  Fulton, Tracy,  and  a  Poland- 

er,  whose  name  I  cannot  give.  The  following  is  a  list  of  those 
killed  and  taken  prisoners,  numbering  177:  — 

Names.  -Age.  Residence. 

Samuel  Austin, 21  ..  Alexandria,   Jefferson   County. 

Charles  Allen, 24  . .  Scriba,  Oswego  ** 

David  Allen, 37  ..  Volney,      "  " 

Philip  Alger, —  . .  Salina,  Onondnga  ** 

Dorethug  Abbey, 48  . .  Paineli  .  Jefferson  ** 

Duncan  Anderson, 48  ..  Lyme,            "  " 

Orlin  Blodget, 19  . .  Philadelphia,  JcfTerson  '* 

John  Bradley, 28  . .  Sackett's  Marbor,  <«  '•'■ 

Thomas  Baker, 47  . .  Hannibal,  Cayugn.  u 

John  Berry, 42  . .  Oswego,  Oswego  « 

Chauncey  Bugby, 22  . .  Lyme,  JeiTerson  *' 

Hiram  Barlow, 19  ..  Morristown,  St.  Law'ce     " 

Charles  Brown, 20  . .  Hastings,  Oswego  <* 

John  Brewster, 19  . .  Henderson,  Jefferson  *^ 

George  T.  Brown, 23  ..  Evans'  Mills,     "  '^ 

Rouse  Bennett, 19  ..  Norway,  Herkimer  " 

George  Blonden, 21  . .  Lower  Canada. 

Ernest  Barance, 40  ..  Native  of  Poland. 

John  Bromley, 38  . .  Depeauville,  Jefferson  " 

Nelson  Butterfield, 22  ..  Philadelphia,      "  »* 

Charles  E.  Bro,vn, 24  ..  Brownsville,      »«  «» 

Christopher  Buckley, 30  . .  Salina,  Onondaga  " 


■r  I 


CAPTAIN     DANIKL     D.    IIEUSTIS. 


63 


Names.  Age, 

Hiram  Colton, 21  .. 

Philip  Coonrod, 21  . . 

Lysander  Curtis, 35  . . 

Robert  G.  Collins, 32  .  • 

Eli  Clark, Gl  .. 

Charles  F.  Crosaman, 19  .. 

Paschul  Carpenter, 20  •  • 

John  Cronkhite, 29  .. 

Calvin  S.  Clark, 19  . . 

Peter  Crankcr, 23  . . 

Hugh  Calhoun, 35  . . 

Truman  Chipinan, 44  •  • 

Nathan  Coffin, 27  . . 

Levi  Chipman, 45  . . 

James  Cummings, 40  . . 

Leonard  Delano, 26  .  • 

Joseph  Drumma, 22  .. 

David  Defield, 28  . . 

Joseph  Dodge, 28  . . 

Moses  A.  Dutcher, 23  . . 

William  Denio, 21  . . 

Luther  Darby, 48  . . 

Aaron  Dresser, 24  . . 

Rensselaer  Drake, 23  . . 

John  Elmore, 19  . . 

Selah  Evans, 35  . . 

Adam  Empy, 40  . . 

Elom  Fellows, 23  . . 

Michael  Fraer, 23  . . 

Edmund  Foster, 21^  . . 

Lorenzo  £.  Finney, 21  . . 

William  Gates, 24  . . 

Emanuel  Garrison, 26  . . 

Gideon  A.  Goodrich, 43  .. 

Nelson  Griggs, 2d  . . 

Jerry  Griggs, 21  . . 

John  Gilman, 38  . . 

David  Gould, 24  . . 

Cornelius  Goodrich, 18  . . 

Francis  Ganyo, 18  . . 

John  Gra  'es, 25  . . 

Daniel  George, 28  . . 

Daniel  D.  Heustis, 32  . . 

Charles  Hariz, 22  . . 

Edmund  Holmes, 24  . . 

Garret  Hicks, 45  . . 

Hiram  Hall, 17  . . 

David  House, 26  . . 

Jacob  Herald, —  . . 

Moses  Haynes, 20  . . 

James  Inglish, 28  . . 

Henry  Johnson, 29  . . 


Residence. 

Philadelphia,  J'^fferson  County. 
Salina,  Onondnj^a  ** 

Ogdcnsburgh,  St.  Law'ce  " 

U  it  (t 

Oswego,  Oswego  •♦ 

Watertowu,  Jelferson         •» 
Leroy,  "  *« 

Alexandria,       "  " 

Fort  Covington,  Franklin  " 
Orleans,  JefTersoa 
Salina,  Onondaga 
Upper  Canada. 
Liverpool,  Onondaga 
Upper  Canada. 
Orleans,  Jefferson 
Watertown,  " 

Salina,  Onondaga 
it 


(( 
(( 


tt 


Brownsville,  JefTerson 
Leroy,  " 

Watertown,  " 

Alexandria,  " 

Salina,  Onondaga 
Leroy,  Jefferson 

Rosace,  St.  Lawrence 
Dexter,  Jefferson 
Clay,  Onondaga 
Alexandria,  Jefferson 
Watertown,  " 

Lyme, 
Brownsville, 
Salina,  Onondaga 


Brownsville,  Jefferson 
Alexandria,  <^ 

Salina,  Onondaga 
Lower  Canada. 
Cosmopolitan. 
Lyme,  Jefferson 
Watertown,  " 
Lyme,  " 

Plattsburg,  Clinton 
Alexandria,  Jefferson 
Orleans,  " 

Alexandria,  <* 
France. 

Salina,  Onondaga 
Adams,  Jeffierson 
New  York  City. 


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61 


CAI'TIVITV     ANU     AliVENTrUF.S     OF 


Names,  Affr. 

John  M.  Jones, 35  . . 

Gcorgo  Kimball, i»()  .. 

Hiram  Kennoy, 20  . . 

JoBopli  Leforc, 2'.)  . . 

Danii'l  Lidcoiiib, 40  . . 

Sauiuci  LivingBton, 40  .. 

Joseph  Loo, 21  . . 

Andrew  Leeper, 44  . . 

Hiram  Loop, 25  . . 

Samuel  Laraby, 35  . . 

Paul  Lamear, —  . . 

Sylvester  A.  Lawton, 28  .. 

Loman  L.  Leach, 40  .. 

Oliver  Lavvton, 22  . . 

Peter  Myer, 20  .. 

Sebastian  Myer, 20  . . 

Calvin  Mattiicws, 25  .. 

Andrew  Moore,     26  . . 

Justus  Merria-.ii, Id.. 

Jehiel  H.  Martin, 32  . . 

Phares  Miller, 18  .. 

John  Morrisset, 20  .. 

Cliauncey  Matthews, 25  .. 

Foster  Martin, 34  . . 

Frederick  Milow,  —  .. 

Oster  Myer, 30  . . 

Alonzo  Mayatt,   IH  .. 

Joseph  Norris, 2G  . . 

Lawrence  O'Reilcy, 46  . . 

Alson  Owen,  27  . . 

Benjamin  Obrey, 18  . . 

Oliver  Obrey, ." 21  . . 

William  O'Neil, 43  .. 

John  Okonskie, 32  . . 

Jacob  Putman, 24  . . 

Asa  Priest, 45  . . 

Gayus  Powers, 24  . . 

Ira  Policy, 22  .. 

Levi  Putman, 24  . . 

Lawton  S.  Peck, 20  . . 

Jacob  Paddock, 18  . . 

James  Pierce, 22  . . 

Ethel  Penny, 19  .. 

James  Phillips, 38  . . 

Joel  Peeler, 41  . . 

Russel  Phelps, 33  .. 

Timothy  Rawson, 24  .. 

William  Reynolds, 19  . . 

Asa  H.  Richardson, 24  . . 

Edgar  Rogers, 18  . . 

Andrew  Richardson, 28  .. 

Solomon  Reynolds, 33  . . 


Residence. 

Philadelphia,  Jeiferson  County. 
Brownsville,  JcfTorson 
Palermo,  Oswego 
Lyme,  JciTcrson 


it 


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M 

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M 

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M 

tt 
tt 


Lisbon,  St.  Lawrence 
Palermo,  Oswego 
Lyme,  JefTerson 
Scruple,  Onondaga 
Rossee,  St.  Lawrence 
Ogdensburgh,  •' 
Lyme,  Jefferson 
Salina,  Onondaga 
Saratoga,  Saratoga 
Salina,  Onondaga 
Rochester,  Munroe 
Lysander,  Onondaga 
Adams,  Jefferson 
Brownsville,  '• 
Oswego,  Oswego 
Leroy,  Jefferson 
Lower  Canada. 
Liverpool,  Onondaga 
Antwerp,  Jefferson 
Germany. 
Poland. 

Lower  Canada. 
Rossee,  St.  Lawrence 
Lyme,  Jefferson 
Palermo,  Oswego 

Madrid,  St.  Lawrence 
tt  tt 

Alexandria,  Jefferson 
Poland. 

Palermo,  Oswego 
Auburn,  Cayuga 
Brownsville,  Jefferson 
Lyme,  ♦* 

tt  M 

Brownsville, 
Salina,  Onondaga 
Orleans,  Jefferson 
Lyme,  " 

Ogdensburgh,  St.  Law'ce  *< 

Rutland,  Jefferson  " 

Lyme,              "  « 

Alexandria,    <*  M 

Orleans,          ««  H 

Upper  Canada.  ** 

Watertown,  Jefferson  " 

Rossee,  St.  Lawrence  <* 

Qucensbury,  Warren  " 


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TAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    IIEUSTIfl. 


65 


Names.  Age. 

Orson  Rogers, 10  . . 

Lysander  Rout, i!7  . . 

Ciiarles  Rogers, —  . . 

Baptistc  Raza, 20  . . 

CharloB  Smith, 21  .. 

John  G.  Swariabcrg, 28  .. 

Price  Senter, 18  . . 

Hiram  Sharp,    25  . . 

Andrew  Smith, 21  . . 

William  Stebbins, 18  .. 

James  L.  Snow, 20  . . 

Henry  Slicw, 28  . . 

OrinW.  Smith, 32  .. 

Joseph  W.  Stewart, 25  .. 

Thomas  Stockton, 40  . . 

William  D.  Sweet, 1!)  .. 

Savoy, 44  . . 

Sylvanna  Sweet, 21  .. 

Oliver  Tucker, 22  .. 

Joseph  Thompson, 26  .. 

Abner  B.  Townsend, 19  .. 

Samuel  Tibbetts, 25  . . 

Julm  Thompson, 27  . . 

Nelson  Truax, 20  . . 

John  Thompson, 24  . . 

Giles  Thomas, 27  . . 

George  Venamber, 23  . . 

Charles  Vanwermer, 21  .. 

Tenike  Venalstine, 30  . . 

Martin  Vanslike, 23  . . 

Hunter  C.  Vaughn, 21  . . 

Nicholas  A.  S.  Von  Shoultz,  43  . . 

Charles  Wilson, 23  . . 

Stephen  S.  Wright, 25  . . 

Nathan  Whiting, 45  . . 

Charles  Woodruff, 21  . . 

Joseph  Wagner, 24  . . 

Riley  Whitney, 28  . . 

Simeon  Webster, 22  .. 

William  Wolcot, !L;0  . . 

Jeremiah  Winegar, 59  . . 

Sampson  A.  Wiley, 20  . . 

Edward  A.  Wik  ni, 27  . . 

Henry  E.  Wilkey, 20  . . 

Samuel  Washburn, 23  . . 

Bemis  Woodbury, 22  . . 

Patrick  White, 25  .. 

Monroe  Wheelock, 23  . . 

Lorenzo  West, 26  . . 

Alexander  Wright, 21  . . 

Martin  Woodruff, 34  .. 


Residence. 

Philadelphia,  Jefferson  County. 
Sacketfs  Harbor,  "  " 

Philadelohia,  "  " 

Montreal,  L.  Canada. 
Lyme,  JelFcraon 
Alexandria,  ^^ 
Perry,  Genesee 
Salina,  Onondaga 
Orleans,  Jefferson 
Brownsville,  " 
Haiitings,  Oswego 
Phi)  dt'lphia,  Jefferst  n 
Orleans,  " 

Wayncsburg,  Mifflin  Co.  Penn. 
Rutland,    Jeffei  jon     County. 


tt 


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Alexuudriu,       * 

f 

Lewisburg,  Lewis 

Ii                       H 

Alexandria,  Jefferson 

tt 

Rutland,              «* 

**                       1 

Lyme,                  ' 

M 

Philadelphia,       ** 

II 

Salina,  Onoi.dagu 

1' 

Madrid,  St.  Lawrence, 

ti                                    ■ 

Antwerp,  Jefferson 

" 

Morristown,  St.  Law'ce 

it                              " 

Salina,  Onondaga 

it 

Alexandria,  Jefferson 

tt 

Ellisburg,  Lewis 

ii 

Salina,  Onondaga 
Watertown,  Jefferson 

(» 

1 

Sacketfs  Harbor,  " 

" 

Salina,  Onondaga 

11 

Lyme,  Jefferson 

l» 

Denmark,  Lewis 

M 

'i<iv'v'rpoo],  Onondaga 

" 

»5ihna,               " 

ii                       ; 

tt                     tt 

M 

Leroy,  Jefferson 

it 

Salina,  Onondaga 

ii 

Clay, 

M 

Brownsville,  Jefferson 

ii 

Watertown,         " 

it 

Ogdensburgh,  St.  Law'ce  " 

Orleans,  Jefferson 

«* 

Oswego,  Oswego 

W 

Auburn,  Cayuga 

M 

Lower  Canada. 

Watertown,  Jefferson 

ti 

Salina,  Onondaga 

it 

1 

Ogdensburgh,  St.  Law'ce  "                           j 

Salina,  Onondaga 

" 

66 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTrUES     OP 


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The  folIowiiiET-named  persons,  included  in  the  foregoing  list^ 
were  killed  at  Windmill  Point :  Nelson  Buttcrfiold,  Charles  E. 
Brown,  Nathan  C«)ffin,  Rensselaer  Drake,  Adam  Empy,  Edmund 
Foster,  Moses  Haynes,  Sanuiel  Laraby,  Paul  Laniear,  Ostei 
Myer,  Benjamin  Obrey,  James  Phillips,  Leonard  Root, Sa- 
voy, Tenike  Venalstinc,  Lorenzo  West,  Alexander  Wright — 17. 

Wounded,  and  died  in  the  hospital :  John  Bromley,  Fred- 
erick Millow,  Monroe  Wheelock  —  3. 

Wounded,  but  not  mortally :  Philip  Alger,  Ernest  Barance, 
Hiram  Colton,  Leonard  Delano,  Selah  Evans,  Lorenzo  E.  Fin- 
ney, Jacob  Herald,  George  Kimball,  Andrew  Moore,  John  Mor- 
risset,  Oliver  Obrey,  John  Okonskie,  Orson  Rogers,  Giles 
Thomas,  Stephen  S.  Wright,  William  Wolcct,  Bemis  Wood- 
bury— 17. 

The  loss  of  the  enemy  was  stated  on  our  trial,  by  a  govern- 
ment witness,  to  have  been  about  twenty  officers,  and  upwards 
of  300  men,  killed,  and  a  very  large  number  wounded.  Ac- 
cording to  the  best  information  I  am  able  to  obtain,  their  loss 
was  much  greater  than  represented.  I  have  lately  seen  and 
conversed  with  a  citizen  of  Canada,  who  assisted  in  burying  the 
dead  taken  from  the  field  at  Prescott.  He  says  he  aided  in  the 
interment  of  700,  and  he  thinks  there  were  300  buried  without 
his  assistance.  This  would  make  the  whole  number  killed 
amount  to  one  thousand!  The  man  appeared  to  be  a  creditable 
witness,  and  I  see  no  reason  for  disbelieving  his  statement. 

The  following  extract  from  the  official  account  of  Colonel 
Gowan,  an  inveterate  tory,  although  false  in  some  respects,  con- 
tains admissions  in  regard  to  the  bravery  of  the  patriots,  and  the 
loss  of  the  British,  which  are  worthy  of  notice.  In  speaking  of 
the  fight  on  the  13th,  when  we  were  first  attacked,  he  says : 
"After  a  few  hot  and  heavy  exchanges  between  the  steamers  and 
the  enemy's  artillery  from  the  tower  or  windmill,  the  battle  com- 
menced on  the  left,  by  driving  in  the  American  outposts.  As 
the  left  wing  advanced  the  fire  of  the  enemy  was  very  galling, 
and  Colonel  Frazer,  seeing  so  many  of  the  brave  marines,  and 
their  gallant  companions,  the  Glengarys,  falling,  ordered  the 
whole  to  advance  and  charge,  which  order  was  promptly  obeyed. 
Three  British  cheers,  and  a  few  paces  of  *  double  quick,'  with 
the  cold  steel  in  front,  soon  exhibited  the  long-legged  Yankees, 
and  gave  our  gallant  boys  possession  of  the  ground,  on  which 
their  right  flank  hnd  taken  post.  Meanwhile,  the  right  wing  was 
advancing  against  the  main  body  of  the  enemy,  who  were  en- 
trenched behind  stone  fences,  and  occupied  a  large  barn,  and 


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CAPTAIN    DANIEL     D.     IIEUSTIS. 


C7 


two  large  stone  houses  close  to  the  windmill  tower.  As  this  di- 
vision advanced,  the  enemy  opened  a  most  galling  fire  upon  it, 
and,  we  regret  to  say,  too  many  of  our  brave  companions  in 
arms  fdl,  gallant  sacrifices  for  the  insulted  honor  of  their  coun- 
try ;  and,  amongst  the  rest,  the  amiahle  but  undaunted  Lieutenant 
Johnson,  of  the  83d.  The  ruffians  were  so  securely  planted  be- 
hind the  stone  fences,  that  they  stood  the  charge  to  the  last ; 
and  so  closely  was  the  ground  contested,  that  Colonel  Gowan  re- 
ceived the  bayonet  of  one  of  the  brigands  in  the  left  hip,  while  in 
personal  conflict  with  him." 

The  only  wound  which  I  received  in  the  fight  was  caused 
by  a  cannon-ball  striking  the  ground  about  four  feet  from  ine, 
and  throwing  a  gravel  stone  against  my  face,  causing  it  to  bleed 
freely,  but  doing  no  essential  injury.  Af\er  the  battle,  I  found 
that  my  coat  had  been  pierced  with  bullets  in  six  different  places; 
and  several  others  were  as  thickly  peppered  as  mine. 

On  Monday,  the  19th,  we  were  separated,  and  confined  in  five 
distinct  rooms.  There  were  forty-two  in  the  room  with  me, 
which  was  just  large  enough  for  us  all  to  stretch  out  in,  leaving 
a  passage-way  in  the  centre,  a  foot  wide.  We  had  nothing  but 
the  bare  floor  to  sleep  on. 

Sheriff  McDonald  came  in  and  told  us  that  he  would  allow 
one  man  in  each  room  to  write  a  letter  to  our  friends.  I  wrote 
to  Barnard  Bagley,  Esq.,  of  Watertown,  acquainting  him  with 
our  situation,  and  giving  him  the  names  of  the  prisoners,  and  the 
names  and  residence  of  the  friends  to  whom  they  wished  him  to 
write.  I  informed  him  of  our  need  of  clothing  and  money,  as 
we  had  no  change  of  linen,  and  many  had  been  robbed  of  their 
money,  coats,  shoes,  and  other  articles  of  necessity. 

In  a  few  days  I  received  an  answer  from  Mr.  Bagley,  inform- 
ing me  that  our  friends  had  contributed  $300,  which  he  had 
sent  to  the  Sheriff,  for  our  use.  During  our  imprisonment  at 
Kingston,  which  lasted  ten  months,  we  received  money  at  differ- 
ent times,  from  our  friends  at  Watertown,  in  all  amounting  to 
the  sum  of  $700. 

Letters  were  written  from  the  other  rooms  to  Salina,  Ogdens- 
burgh,  Oswego,  and  Syracuse,  and  money  was  received  from 
these  and  other  places,  in  all  amounting  to  between  $3,500  and 
$4,000.  This  money,  if  we  could  have  used  it  ourselves,  would 
have  alleviated  our  situation  much.  It  had  to  pass  through  the 
hands  of  our  keepers,  who  lost  nothing  by  the  operation. 

A  man  named  Counter,  a  wealthy  baker,  was  the  contractor 
for  supplying  the  prison  with  provisions.     He  was  a  member  of 


68 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OP 


V,  ; 


*.!l 


i-r, 


(•  <*■ 


the  Methodist  Church,  and  if  it  had  many  such  members  its 
character  would  need  purifying,  to  render  it  fit  for  this  world,  to 
say  nothing  of  the  world  to  come.  He  took  our  money  and  pur- 
chased various  articles  which  we  needed,  and  for  which  we  had 
to  pay  his  own  price.  Notwithstanding  the  prices  were  exor- 
bitantly high,  we  always  got  the  meanest  articles.  We  were,  in 
fact,  robbed  of  half  our  money  by  this  hypocritical  saint. 

Our  bread,  baked  in  this  monster's  oven,  was  a  perfect  com- 
pound of  unclean  ingredients.  We  made  a  complaint  to  Sheriff 
McDonald  about  it,  and  exhibited  to  him  specimens  of  the  dirty 
stuff.  The  Sheriff  sent  for  Counter,  and,  in  our  presence,  gave 
him  a  caustic  reprimand,  in  which  certain  profane  expressions 
were  freely  introduced,  without  much  regard  to  the  religious 
professions  of  the  contractor.  In  conclusion,  the  Sheriff  ordered 
him  to  furnish  better  bread  in  future. 

A  part  of  our  money  was  spent  in  purchasing  bedding,  of 
which  we  had  thus  far  been  destitute.  Counter  bought  us  a 
straw  bed  for  every  two  men,  and  two  blankets  to  each  bed. 
We  had  no  bedsteads,  but  spread  our  beds  out  on  the  floor  at 
night,  and  rolled  them  up  in  the  morning.  This  was  not  a  very 
aristocratic  style  of  living,  surely ;  and  when,  in  addition  to  our 
mean  accommodations,  we  found  the  prison  infested  with  ver- 
min, we  were  in  a  proper  state  of  mind  to  exclaim,  in  the  lan- 
guage of  a  celebrated  politician,  "  our  sufferings  is  intolerable." 

We  had  to  pay  for  our  dishes,  shaving  utensils,  knives  and 
forks,  and  all  the  little  conveniences  that  were  furnished  us. 
In  this  manner  the  money  contributed  by  our  kind-hearted 
friends  was  expended.  When  we  left  Fort  Henry,  we  were  not 
allowed  to  take  with  us  any  of  the  articles  which  had  thus  been 
procured.  Not  satisfied  with  meanly  cheating  us  in  the  original 
purchase,  our  keepers  finally  concluded  to  rob  us  of  the  whole, 
for  the  benefit,  I  suppose,  of  the  amiable  contractor,  who  proba- 
bly soh'  what  we  left  behind,  to  prisoners  who  succeeded  us. 

When  Christmas  arrived,  the  benevolent  feelings  of  the  afore- 
said Mr.  Counter  were  evidently  awakened  and  called  into  vig- 
orous action,  by  the  hallowed  associations  of  the  day;  in  addi- 
tion to  our  usual  allowance  of  food,  he  sent  us  in  a  bread  pud- 
ding, sweetened  with  molasses !  It  was  very  dry  and  hard ; 
dainty  people  might  have  refused  to  eat  it ;  but  such  a  refusal  on 
our  part  would  have  been  unreasonable,  for  the  allowance  was 
very  small  to  each  man,  not  enough,  hard  as  it  was,  to  baflle  tho 
digestive  organs !  That  tho  philosophy  of  Epicurus  formed  no 
^•art  of  Mr.  Counter's  system  of  prison  discipline,  we  had  pre- 


' 


libers  its 
world,  to 
and  pur- 
h  we  had 
ere  exor- 
I  were,  in 
t. 

*ect  com- 
o  Sheriff 
the  dirty 
ice,  gave 
pressions 
religious 
r  ordered 

Iding,  of 
ght  us  a 
ach  bed. 
floor  at 
ot  a  very 
tn  to  our 
vith  ver- 
the  lan- 
;rable." 
ives  and 
shed  us. 
hearted 
ivere  not 
us  been 
original 
whole, 
proba- 
us. 
le  afore- 
nto  vig- 
n  addi- 
ad  pud- 
hard; 
fusal  on 
ice  was 
affle  tho 
lied  no 
ad  pre- 


CAFTAIN     DANIEL     D.    IIKISI'IH. 


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ined. 


6  fact  i 


Bi 


viousjy  ascertaii 

prepared  fully  to  appreciate  the  disinterested  benevolence  of  the 
contractor,  in  sending  us  such  a  Christmas  present,  until  a  few 
days  afterwards,  when  he  presented  to  the  Sheriff  a  bill  for  that 
same  pudding,  by  which  it  appeared  that  he  had  charged  us  the 
nice  little  sum  oi forty  dollars  for  the  luxury  ! 

After  we  had  been  in  prison  a  few  days,  the  dueen's  Attor- 
ney, Armstrong,  took  Von  Shoultz  into  a  separate  room,  and 
required  him  to  make  and  sign  a  statement,  to  be  used  as  evi- 
dence on  his  trial.  On  the  3d  of  December  the  trial  took  place 
before  a  militia  court-martial.  Von  Shoultz  pleaded  guilty  to 
the  charge  of  having  been  arrayed  in  arms,  and  said. he  was 
fighting  in  the  cause  of  liberty.  The  trial  was  nothing  but  a 
mock  ceremony,  as  the  case  of  the  chivalric  Polander  had  been 
prejudged,  in  the  tory  councils,  and  the  court-martial  had 
nothing  to  do  but  to  record  the  sentence  of  death.  After  his 
condemnation,  he  was  removed  from  Fort  Henry  to  the  jail  in 
the  village  of  Kingston,  and  we  never  saw  him  again.  Tlie  last 
parting  scene,  in  which  he  bid  us  all  farewell,  filled  every  heart 
with  grief.  He  spoke  a  kind  word  to  each  one,  and  exhorted  us 
all  to  die  like  men.  His  bearing,  in  this  hour  of  severe  trial,  as 
it  ever  had  been,  was  manly  and  noble.  On  the  Gth,  three  days 
after  the  sham  trial,  the  death-warrant  was  read  to  him,  and  on 
the  8th  he  suffered  a  martyr's  death  on  the  scaffold.  During  his 
short  imprisonment,  he  won  the  esteem  of  all  who  came  in  con- 
tact with  him.  The  officers  of  the  83d  regiment,  in  particular, 
who  had  witnessed  his  heroism  on  the  field  of  battle,  sought  his 
acquaintance,  and  became  deeply  interested  in  his  fate.  They 
implored  Sir  George  Arthur  to  spare  his  life,  but  that  bloody 
tyrant  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  every  supplication  in  behalf  of  the 
victim  he  had  determined  to  sacrifice.  When  the  hour  for  the 
execution  arrived.  Von  Shoultz  shook  hands  with  those  around 
him,  and  every  eye  was  suffused  with  tears.  He  was  prepared 
to  die.  In  his  last  moments  he  betrayed  no  unmanly  weakness; 
he  marched  with  a  firm  and  fearless  step  to  the  gallows,  where  his 
virtuous  and  patriotic  life  was  brought  to  a  premature  close. 

For  the  following  facts  relative  to  the  brilliant  career  of  our 
murdered  leader,  I  am  indebted,  principally,  to  a  letter  addressed 
to  the  editor  of  the  Syracuse  Standard,  by  Warren  Green,  Esq., 
of  Salina.  Mr.  Green  had  been  intimately  acquainted  with  him 
during  his  residence  in  Salina.  In  a  letter,  dated  "  Kingston 
Jail,  7th  December,  1838,"  the  day  before  his  execution,  Colonel 
Von  Shoultz  informed  Mr.  Green  that  he  had  appointed  him  ex- 


':  f 


70 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


.1*.    i 
>f     -i 


ecutor  of  his  will;  and  said,  if  the  British  government  would  per- 
mit it,  he  wished  to  be  buried  on  Mr.  Green's  farm. 

Colonel  Von  Shoultz  was  of  Swedish  descent,  a  Pole  by  birth, 
and  of  noble  extraction.  lie  had  just  finished  an  education, 
which  versed  him  deeply  in  the  sciences,  both  useful  and  orna- 
mental, and  had  acquired  high  literary  honors,  when  he  found 
himself  engaged  in  that  sanguinary  and  unequal  contest  between 
Poland  and  Russia,  the  unhappy  termination  of  which  lost  to 
himself  a  country,  and  to  that  unfortunate  country  every  thing 
but  a  name.  As  he  was  extremely  modest  in  his  pretensions,  he 
was  seldom  heard  to  revert  to  personal  achievements  incidental 
to  eveikts  so  memorable,  and  then  only  under  circumstances  of 
the  highest  excitement.  But  in  these  occassional  departures  from 
self-reserve,  and,  incontestably,  from  other  sources,  it  was  learned 
that  the  important  part  he  enacted  was  brilliant  with  heroic  ad- 
ventures and  hair-breadth  escapes.  Certain  it  is,  he  signali/cd 
himself  amid  a  host  of  heroes;  for  his  rise  was  sudden,  from  the 
comparative  obscurity  of  the  scholar  to  the  responsible  command 
of  a  colonel. 

In  the  sanguinary  and  decisive  struggle  before  the  walls  of 
Warsaw,  his  father  and  a  brother  fell  martyrs  to  the  sacred  cause 
of  liberty.  His  mother  and  a  sister  fled,  in  the  disguise  of 
peasants,  but  were  taken  and  banished  to  Russia,  and  are  now 
confined  to  a  space  of  ten  miles  square  of  that  empire.  Gashed 
and  scarred  with  wounds,  but  covered  with  imperishable  glory, — 
a  fugitive,  wandering  from  country  to  country ;  friends  and  for- 
tune lost,  despoiled  of  home  and  kindred,  with  a  constitution 
much  impaired,  —  Von  Shoultz  finally  landed  on  our  shores. 

Sweden,  Denmark,  Finland,  Lapland,  Norway,  Germany, 
Holland,  Austria,  Italy,  Switzerland,  France,  Spain,  Portugal, 
and  England,  had  been  the  theatre  of  his  travels,  and  he  Bad 
not  only  acquired  a  general  geographical  knowledge  of  them  all, 
but  an  intimate  acquaintance  with  the  habits,  manners,  and  cus- 
toms of  the  inhabitants.  He  spoke  eight  different  dialects ;  but, 
at  the  time  of  his  arrival  here,  he  had  only  an  imperfect  knowl- 
edge of  our  own.  Ilis  father's  interest  in  the  celebrated  mineH 
of  Cracow,  led  him  to  an  intimate  knowledge  of  the  manufacture 
of  salt.  Thrown  upon  his  own  resources,  in  a  land  of  strangers, 
stripped  of  every  vestige  of  property  except  a  few  family  relics, 
he  cast  aboitt  him  with  his  usual  energy  for  the  means  of  a  live- 
lihood, and  these  considerations  brought  him  to  the  Onondaga 
salines,  in  the  fall  of  1830.  Here  he  fitted  up  a  small  laboratory, 
made  his  experiments,  became  confirmed  in  the  truth  of  a  new 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D,    IIKUSTIS. 


71 


ould  per- 

by  birth, 
Jucniion, 
nd  orna- 
he  found 

between 
h  lost  to 
ery  thinj;; 
tsions,  ho 
ncidentul 
lances  of 
ures  from 
IS  learned 
leroic  ad- 
iignali/cd 

from  the 
command 


walls  of 

red  cause 

guise  of 

are  now 

Gashed 

glory,— 

and  for- 

istitution 


theory,  and  succeeded  in  convincing  at  least  one  individual  of 
the  practicability  and  utility  of  his  improvement.  He  then  pro- 
ceeded to  Washington,  obtained  letters  patent,  visited  and  ana- 
lyzed the  principal  springs  in  Virginia,  made  the  most  favorable 
impressions  wherever  he  extended  his  business  or  acquaintance, 
and  finally  returned  to  Salina  and  put  two  furnaces  in  operation, 
on  his  plan,  successfully.  While  thus  engaged,  the  diabolical 
outrages  perpetrated  by  the  British  government  on  the  people  of 

_         Canada,  awakened  his  sympathies  in  behalf  of  the  oppressed. 

■  His  soul  was  fired  at  the  thought  of  again  being  permitted  to 
strike  for  freedom.  His  enthusiastic  recklessness  of  danger  led 
him  into  its  very  vortex,  and  he  perished,  a  victim  upon  the  altar 
of  liberty !  He  was  a  good  military  engineer,  a  skilful  com- 
mander, and  a  man  of  the  most  fearless  intrepidity.  Had  he 
fallen  in  battle,  we  might  have  regretted  his  fate  without  im- 
pugning its  justice ;  but  it  will  be  a  reproach  to  the  British  gov- 
ernment, through  all  succeeding  time,  thjit  this  chivalrous  cham- 
pion of  freedom  was  sacrificed,  in  the  prime  of  life,  for  imitating 
the  example  of  Lafayette  and  other  heroes  of  the  American  rev- 
olution. A  fearful  retribution  will  yet  overtake  the  bloody  exe- 
cutioners. 

"On  a  review  of  the  sparkling  incidents  of  his  brief  and  ro- 
mantic career,"  says  Mr.  Green,  *'  I  still  think  of  him  as  the 
creature  of  a  high-wrought  fancy,  rather  than  of  sober  reality; 
like  a  meteor  of  uncommon  brilliancy,  which  has  suddenly  illu- 
mined the  path  of  my  dull  existence,  and  as  suddenly  disap- 
peared forever." 

He  was  betrothed  to  a  beautiful  and  accomplished  American 
lady,  of  Salina,  whose  miniature  was  torn  from  his  neck  at  the 
time  of  his  capture.  He  wrote,  a  few  days  previous  to  his  death, 
a  beautiful  song,  entitled  "  The  Maiden's  Answer,"  which  he 
8ung,  with  a  thrilling  yet  plaintive  voice,  to  his  companions.  It 
referred,  in  touching  and  appropriate  terms,  to  her  whom  he 
loved  with  all  the  ardor  of  his  impulsive  nature. 


!    i  ' 


m 


1^  ^.ii4'.u,f> 


W' 


i  I. 


CHAPTER   VII. 

3nie  Reign  of  Terror — Execution  of  several  Prisoners — Cotn* 
■•  ments  of  the  Democratic  Reoiete  on  these  hideous  Murders  — 
.  The  Author's  Trial— Anecdote  of  "  Old  Hicks  "  —  Character 
of  Sheriff  McDonald — His  Profanity  —  Uncommon  Vigilance 
■^  to  prevent  our  Escape  —  Visits  from  our  Friends  —  Private 
t  Money  smuggled  into  the  Prison  —  Six  Breakfasts  eaten  by 
*  one  Man — Pardon  of  a  Portion  of  the  Prisoners — Mrs.  Skin- 
'  ner's  Effort  in  my  Behalf — A  Visit  from  the  Governor — Cel- 
■^  ebration  of  the  Fourth  of  July  in  Prison. 

The  reign  of  terror  had  now  commenced.  We  were  in  the 
hands  of  the  Robespierres  of  Canada,  and  the  guillotine  was 
in  readiness  to  despatch  its  victims.  The  gloom  and  monotony 
of  prison  life ;  the  unrelenting  murder  of  our  beloved  commander , 
the  uncertainty  which  brooded  over  our  destiny;  the  blood- 
thirsty disposition  evinced  by  the  tories,  and  especially  by  Gov- 
ernor Arthur,  to  whom  we  were  obliged  to  look  for  clemency ; 
the  summary  process  of  trying  us  by  a  court-martial,  composed 
of  persons  known  to  be  violently  hostile  to  us,  and  selected  for 
that  very  reason ;  the  effort  to  induce  some  of  our  men  to  turn 
queen's  witnesses,  by  an  oder  of  free  pardon  for  themselves ;  —  all 
these  things  tended  to  render  our  situation  exceedingly  un- 
pleasant. It  was  boldly  declared,  in  advance  of  any  trial,  that 
all  the  leaders,  at  least,  would  be  hung.  How  comprehensive 
the  tory  definition  of  the  word  "  leaders  "  might  be,  we  had  no 
very  satisfactory  means  of  deciding.  Every  man  who  was  known 
to  have  been  an  active  participator  in  the  patriot  movements  on 
the  frontier  considered  that  his  doom  was  sealed.  In  previous 
chapters  the  reader  will  have  learned  that  I  was  somewhat  deeply 
implicated,  and  the  fact  that  I  had  been  arraigned  before  the 
civil  tribunals  of  my  own  country,  on  account  of  my  connection 
with  these  movements,  rendered  my  case  one  of  the  most  des- 
perate. The  reflections  incident  to  such  a  situation,  as  may 
easily  be  imagined,  were  not  of  the  most  agreeable  character. 
Still,  I  never  indulged  in  melancholy  forebodings. 

On  the  12th  of  Dece  nber,  four  days  after  the  execution  of 
Von  Shoultz,  Colonel  Dorethus  Abbey  and  Daniel  George  were 


—  Com- 
rders  — 
iaracter 
igilance 
Private 
aten  by 
's.  Skiti' 
r'—Cel- 


i  in  the 
ine  was 
lonotony 
mander , 
J  blood- 
by  Gov- 
inency ; 
imposed 
ited  for 
to  turn 
IS ;  —  all 
ly   un- 
j&\,  thai 
thensive 
had  no 
known 
ints  on 
revious 
deeply 
fore  the 
ection 
>st  des- 
i8  may 
racter. 

[ion  of 
|e  were 


ADVENTURES    OF    CAPTAIN     HEUSTIS. 


73 


led  to  the  scaffold.  I  had  been  in  the  room  with  Colonel  Abbey. 
Three  or  four  days  before  his  murder,  the  Sheriff  came  in,  and 
told  him  he  had  received  orders  for  his  execution,  and  wished 
him  to  get  ready  to  remove  to  the  cell  of  the  condemned,  imme- 
diately. He  received  the  intelligence  with  manly  coolness,  and, 
on  leaving,  shook  hands  with  us  all,  bidding  us  farewell.  There 
is  a  melting  power  in  that  single  word  "  farewell," — when  spoken 
for  the  last  time,  under  such  peculiar  and  distressing  circum- 
stances,—  which  opens  the  fountain  of  the  heart,  and  sends  tears 
of  sorrow  trickling  down  the  hardy  cheeks  of  manhood.  Sepa- 
ration from  friends  is  at  all  times  afflictive  to  the  feelings ;  but 
when  they  leave  at  the  bidding  of  the  executioner,  who  is  to  sever 
the  brittle  thread  of  life  and  consign  them  to  "  that  bourn  from 
whence  no  traveller  returns,"  how  sad,  how  solemn,  how  over- 
powering is  the  scene !  What  a  throng  of  deep  emotions  crowd 
the  heart,  and  cause  every  fibre  to  palpitate ! 

Colonel  Abbey  was  a  native  of  Connecticut,  and  a  printer  and 
editor  by  profession.  To  his  three  orphan  children  he  addressed 
affectionate  letters,  on  the  evening  previous  to  his  death.  To 
one  of  these  letters  there  was  a  postscript,  written  the  next  morn- 
ing, as  follows :  "  I  slept  soundly  and  quietly  last  night ;  I  now 
feel  as  though  I  could  meet  the  event  with  composure." 

Mr.  George  was  taken  prisoner  in  attempting  to  cross  the 
river,  as  described  in  a  previous  chapter.  He  belonged  to  Lyme, 
Jefferson  county,  and  was  a  brave,  resolute,  and  worthy  man. 
He  lefl  a  disconsolate  widow,  who  has  never  recovered  from  the 
shock.  I  have  seen  and  conversed  with  her  sincj  my  return 
from  bondage.  Nothing  can  assuage  the  grief  of  that  heart- 
broken woman. 

Colonel  MartinWoodruff,  of  Salina,  was  executed  on  the  19th. 
He  was  a  man  of  great  courage,  and  a  first-rate  officer.  At  the 
Windmill  he  displayed  heroic  bravery ;  and  he  met  his  fate,  as  he 
had  fought,  with  lion-hearted  resolution.  I  knew  him  personally, 
and  always  found  him  true  to  the  patriot  cause,  in  which  his  soul 
was  enthusiastically  engaged.  He  lefl  a  mourning  widow  and 
three  children.  The  Kingston  Spectator  thus  described  the 
scene  of  his  murder :  "  He  was  placed  on  the  platform,  the  cap 
pulled  over  his  face,  and  the  hangman  then  fastened  the  rope  to 
a  hook  in  the  beam  over  head.  The  platform  fell,  and  a  revolt- 
ing, disgusting,  and  disgraceful  spectacle  was  presented  to  view. 
The  knot,  instead  of  drawing  tight  under  the  ear,  was  brougHt 
to  the  chin ;  it  did  not  slip,  but  left  space  enough  to  put  a  hand 
within,  the  chief  weight  of  the  body  bearing  upon  the  rope  at  the 


74 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OV 


f^' 


1      *t 


back  of  the  neck.  The  body  was  in  great  agitation,  and  seemed 
to  suffer  greatly.  The  spectators  said  it  wus  shameful  man- 
agement, and  then  two  hangmen  endeavored  to  strangle  the  suf- 
ferer." The  Port  Ontario  Aurora  said,  "  His  neck  was  not 
broken  till  the  hangman  on  the  cross-tree  had  pulled  him  up  by 
the  collar  and  let  him  fall  four  times  in  succession." 

On  the  22d  day  of  December,  Joel  Peeler  and  JSylvanus  Sweet, 
two  of  the  most  inoffensive  men  in  the  lot,  were  sent  to  the  gal- 
lows. The  Prescott  affair  was  the  first  and  only  movement  they 
had  been  identified  with.  When  they  were  dragged  to  the 
scaffold,  it  really  seemed  as  if  an  indiscriminate  slaughter  of  all 
the  prisoners  had  been  decreed.  None  of  us  were  less  deeply 
implicated,  and  their  martyrdom  shows  how  utterly  regardless 
the  bloody  executioners  were  of  all  discrimination,  so  long  as 
they  could  find  subjects  for  their  malignant  revenge  to  operate 
upon. 

On  the  4th  of  January,  1839,  four  others  were  escorted  to  the 
gallows,  namely,  Christopher  Buckley,  Sylvester  A.  Lawton, 
Russell  Phelps,  and  Duncan  Anderson.  They  were  brave  men ; 
but  what  they  had  done,  to  be  singled  out  from  the  rest  and  sac- 
rificed on  the  scaffold,  I  have  never  been  able  to  learn.  Poor 
Anderson  was  sick,  and  could  not  have  lived  many  weeks,  if 
they  had  taken  the  best  care  of  him  !  He  was  so  weaV  that  his 
murderers  were  obliged  to  support  him  on  the  scaffolu  !  Com- 
ment on  such  atrocious  barbarity  is  needless.  In  the  evening, 
after  this  inhuman  execution,  Colonel  Dundas  and  his  officers 
had  a  gay  and  mirthful  pleasure  party  !  O,  shame  !  where  is  thy 
blush? 

On  the  llth  of  February,  Leman  L.  Leach  was  executed.  He 
was  one  of  the  most  daring  and  fearless  men  I  ever  saw.  He 
was  so  perfectly  reckless  of  danger  that  nothing  could  intimidate 
him.  Not  having  finished  his  breakfast  when  the  officer  came  to 
escort  him  to  the  gallows,  he  insisted  on  being  allowed  to  enjoy 
his  last  meal,  and  kept  the  officer  waiting  till  he  had  coolly  and 
deliberately  concluded  his  repast.  This  heedless  indifference  in 
regard  to  his  fate  was  characteristic  of  the  man.  Aside  from  his 
bravery,  there  were  not  so  many  attractive  points  in  his  charac- 
ter as  were  exhibited  by  the  other  martyrs. 

The  Democratic  Review,  for  March,  1839,  expressed  the  fol- 
lowing just  sentiments  in  relation  to  these  and  other  executions 
in  Canada: — 

"  The  most  foul  atrocities  with  which  this  part  of  our  conti- 
nent has  ever  been  stained,  taking  into  considerate  connection 


I 


I 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL    D.    UEUSTIS. 


n 


and  seemed 
meful  maii- 
igle  the  8uf- 
ck  was  not 
1  him  up  by 

ranus  Sweet, 
It  to  the  gal- 
vement  they 
igged  to  the 
ighter  of  all 
.  less  deeply 
ly  regardless 
,  so  long  as 
re  to  operate 

icorted  to  the 
A.  Lawton, 
e  brave  men; 
rest  and  sac- 
learn.     Poor 
iny  weeks,  if 
venl<  that  his 
ffolu  1     Com- 
the  evening, 
I  his  officers 
where  is  thy 

xecuted.  He 
ver  saw.  He 
lid  intimidate 
jcer  came  to 
iwed  to  enjoy 
id  coolly  and 
difference  in 
side  from  his 
n  his  charac- 

lessed  the  fol- 
ler  executions 

lof  our  conti- 
le  connection 


all  the  facts  and  circumstances  of  the  case,  are  unquestionably 
the  late  British  executions  in  our  neighbor  state  of  Canada.  In 
the  present  age  of  the  world,  and  the  present  maturity  of  the 
public  mind,  to  extinguish  human  life  for  political  opinion  is  not 
a  whit  less  infamous  or  revolting  than  it  would  be  to  revive  the 
fires  of  Smithdeld,  and  burn  men,  women,  and  children,  for  re- 
ligious belief.  It  is  impossible  to  apply  to  this  case  the  justifica- 
tion of  legal  right.  The  laws  of  England,  which  have  been  de- 
filed by  her  monarchs  with  penalties  for  every  crime,  sanguinary 
as  the  code  of  Draco,  authorize  the  penalty  of  death  in  unnum- 
bered instances,  where  the  daily  practice  of  her  courts  shows 
that  it  is  necessary,  for  justice's  sake,  to  preserve  the  life.  The 
law  of  high  treason,  in  particular,  under  which  these  hideous 
murders  have  been  committed,  is  as  old  as  the  reign  of  Edward 
HI.,  and  ordains  capital  punishment  for  conspiring  the  death  of 
the  king !  If  the  great  Jefferson,  in  the  sincere  respect  of  a 
philosophic  lawgiver  for  the  rights  of  posterity,  and  with  a  sacred 
deference  to  the  progress  of  opinion,  questioned  the  power  and 
doubted  the  propriety  of  a  legislature's  enacting  laws  binamg  for 
more  than  one  generation,  what  shall  we  think  in  our  land,  and 
in  an  age  subsequent  to  Jeflersoii,  of  the  horrid  criminality  of 
these  bloody  executions  in  Canada,  under  a  law  some  hundreds 
of  years  old,  and  for  an  offence  an  American  and  a  republican 
cannot  commit.  No,  the  spirit  of  murder  is  essentially  com- 
bined with  the  spirit  of  British  monarchy.  The  sanguinary  sel- 
fishness of  its  fear  of  light,  truth,  justice,  and  patriotism,  has 
traced  its  long  career,  in  the  pages  of  British  history,  in  the  best 
blood  of  its  own  land ;  and  it  is  not  to  be  borne  that  the  monster 
appetite  is  now  to  be  satiated  with  American  and  republican  vic- 
tims. We  say  American,  without  especial  reference  to  the  na- 
tives of  the  United  States  who  perished  at  its  bidding,  but  also 
of  the  more  friendless  Canadians,  natives  of  the  same  soil,  chil- 
dren of  the  same  sun,  and  inheriting  the  same  sympathies  and 
associations,  as  ourselves. 

*'  We  attach  no  blame  to  the  people  of  England,  for  these 
atrocities.  Their  influence,  wherever  it  has  found  its  way  into 
the  legislation  of  their  country,  has  been — like  that  of  the  peth 
pie  in  all  countries — uniformly  beneficial,  enlightened,  and  hu- 
mane. The  influence  of  her  monarchy  has  been,  on  the  contrary, 
as  uniformly  bad.         »*****» 

"  What  a  noble  army  of  martyrs,  soon  to  be  honored  as  they 
deserve,  would  not  these  names  compose ;  from  the  Cobhams  and 
Balls  of  her  early  history,  to  the  Russells  and  Sidneys,  or  Em- 


v:'  (• 


il: 


ii 


f' 


96 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES    OF 


II 


inets  and  Lonnt«  of  her  modern  nnnals,  whose  fame  will  shine  in 
brightnesH  iindiminisheii,  when  the  loathing  and  wrath  of  aroused 
and  free  opinion  «linll  have  prostrated  forever  the  system  that 
destroyed  them,  because  it  could  not  exist  in  the  same  age  with 
so  much  purity  and  worth.  The  inexpressible  indignation  and 
disgust  which  the  perpetration  of  these  atrocities,  in  this  hemis- 
phere, has  occasioned,  throughout  the  whole  length  and  breadth 
of  this  land,  may  image  forth  the  reaction  of  that  tide  of  virtuous 
feeling  that  ere  long  will  swell  up  in  a  strength  that  will  at  once 
atone  and  avenge  the  whole.  Yes !  let  it  go  forth.  Never, 
never  will  the  loathing  which  the  judicial  murders  of  these  hap- 
less Canadians  has  attached,  in  all  enlightened  opinion,  to  the 
British  monarchy,  be  effaced,  nor  the  indignant  abhorrence  they 
have  excited,  subside,  until  a  power  thus  disgustingly  alien  to  the 
feelings,  the  interests,  and  the  sympathies,  as  well  as  the  soil  of 
freemen,  shall  have,  been  utterly  expelled  from  the  broad  expanse 
of  the  North  American  continent,  whose  free  soil  its  odious  and 
cruel  policy  has  thus  foully  polluted." 

On  the  ITth  of  December,  I  was  arraigned  before  the  court- 
martial,  with  eleven  others,  for  trial.  The  court  consisted  of 
about  a  dozen  militia  (or  malicious)  officers.  Previous  to  this 
time  I  had  been  called  out  of  my  room,  in  company  with  O.  W. 
Smith  and  others,  to  make  a  statement  to  the  Queen's  Attorney. 
As  we  did  not  exactly  like  this  method  of  furnishing  testimony 
to  be  used  against  us,  and  had  some  doubts  as  to  the  legal  right 
of  the  court  or  its  officers  to  exact  it,  our  statements  were  as 
guarded  and  cautious  as  we  could  well  make  them.  The  Attor- 
ney pretended  to  take  them  down  in  writing.  In  a  few  days  he 
came  to  our  room,  and  wanted  us  to  sign  the  documents  he  had 
drawn  up.  On  reading  them,  we  found  he  had  colored  them  as 
much  as  possible,  to  our  disadvantage.  I  refused  to  sign  the  one 
prepared  for  me,  and  Smith  also  refused  to  sign  his.  The  At- 
torney insisted  upon  it,  but  all  to  no  purpose.  He  said  it  was 
useless  for  us  to  undertake  to  be  stubborn,  as  he  knew  all  about 
us,  and  we  were  sure  to  be  htng  !  I  told  him,  if  the  government 
had  already  decided  to  hang  us,  as  he  had  intimated,  they  could 
do  so,  but  they  must  not  expect  us  to  furnish  the  rope!  He  left 
us,  not  very  well  satisfied  with  the  result  of  his  attempt  to  bam- 
boozle the  Yankees.  A  few  days  afterwards,  having  had  time  to 
cool  down  a  little,  he  allowed  us  to  make  new  statements,  which 
he  drew  up  with  tolerable  accuracy,  and  we  then  sign«d  them. 
All  hope  of  a  fair  and  impartial  trial,  with  such  men  for  accusers 
and  judges,  must  certainly  have  rested  on  a  sandy  foundation. 


I 


> 


' 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.    IIF.USTIS. 


77 


shine  in 
f  aroused 
tern  that 
age  with 
tion  and 
is  hemis- 
i  breadth 
f  virtuous 
1  at  once 
Never, 
hese  hap- 
in,  to  the 
jnce  they 
ien  to  the 
[le  soil  of 
d  expanse 
dious  and 

he  court- 
isisted  of 
)us  to  this 
lith  O.  W. 
Attorney, 
testimony 
ral  right 
were  as 
le  Attor- 
days  he 
ts  he  had 
them  as 
n  the  one 
The  At- 
id  it  was 
all  about 
vernment 
ley  could 
He  left 
t  to  bam- 
d  time  to 
ts,  which 
id  them, 
accusers 
ation. 


I 


! 


The  accusation  was  the  same  against  us  all.  I  received  a  copy 
of  the  charge  against  me,  a  few  days  before  the  trial.  It  read  ai 
follows:  — 

"  For  the  said  Daniel  D.  Heustis,  on  the  12th  day  of  Novem- 
ber, and  on  divers  other  days  between  that  day  and  the  I6th  day 
of  November,  in  the  second  yen-  of  the  reign  of  our  Sovereign 
Lady  Victoria,  by  the  grace  of  God,  of  the  United  Kinffdom  of 
Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  Clueen,  defender  of  the  faith,  with 
force  and  arms,  at  the  township  of  Augusta,*  in  the  District  of 
Johnstown  and  Province  of  Upper  Canada,  being  a  citizen  of  a 
foreign  state,  at  peace  with  the  United  Kingdom  of  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland,  that  is  to  say,  the  United  States  of  America,  having 
joined  himself  to  several  subjects  of  our  said  Lady  the  Queen, 
who  were  then  and  there  unlawfully  and  traitorously  in  arns 
against  our  said  Ludy  the  Queen,  the  said  Daniel  D.  Heustis, 
with  the  said  subjects  of  her  said  Majesty,  so  unlawfully  and 
traitorously  in  arms  as  aforesaid,  did  then  and  there,  armed  with 
guns  and  bayonets,  and  other  warlike  weapons,  feloniously  kill 
and  slay  divers  of  her  said  Majesty's  loyal  subjects,  contrary 
to  the  statute  in  such  cases  made  and  provided,  and  against 
the  peace  of  our  said  Lady  the  Queen,  her  crown  and  dignity. 
You  are  hereby  notified  that  the  foregoing  is  a  copy  of  the  charge 
|)referred  against  you,  and  upon  which  you  will  be  tried  before 
the  Militia  General  Court-Martial,  assembled  at  Fort  Henry,  in 
the  Midland  District,  on  Monday,  the  17th  day  of  December, 
1838.  You  will  forward  to  me  the  names  of  any  witnesses  you 
may  desire  to  have  summoned  for  your  defence.  Dated  the  10th 
day  of  December,  1838. 

(Signed)  WM.  H.  DRAPER,  Advocate-General." 

We  all  pleaded  *'  Not  Guilty."  Five  or  six  witnesses  were 
sworn  against  me,  among  whom  were  Levi  Chipman,  a  Canadian 
by  birth,  Alonzo  Mayatt  and  Baptiste  Raza,  French  Canadians, 
who  were  of  our  own  party,  and  had  turned  queen's  evidence. 
Their  testimony  amounted  to  nothing.  Captain  Sandum  testified 
that  we  surrendered  to  him,  and  he  appeared  to  be  very  proud 
of  the  honor.  An  ensign  of  the  83d  re^nrnent  testified  that 
twenty-eight  men  were  killed  out  of  his  company;  also,  that 
about  twenty  ofllicers  and  more  than  three  hundred  privates  were 
killed,  on  the  British  side,  and  a  great  many  wounded.     None 

*  The  battle-field  wns  in  Augusta,  but  being  near  Prescott,  the  fight 
has  always  been  called  "  The  Battle  of  Prescott." 


7l 


CAPTIVITY     AND     AnVENTURP.S     OP 


h  ■ 


■^  m 


of  the  witnesses  could  identify  us  but  Chipman,  and  he  knew 
but  little.  John  Graves,  another  traitor  and  <]ueen'8  witness, 
had  been  giving  private  information  against  us,  but  he  was  not 
produced  at  the  trial.  Smith  and  myself  retained  a  lawyer  to 
assist  us  in  our  defence,  but  he  was  only  permitted  to  remain  in 
the  room  during  the  trial,  without  saying  a  word. 

After  the  farcical  ceremony  of  examining  the  witnesses,  the 
members  of  the  court  busied  themselves  for  about  two  minutes 
and  a  half,  apparently  in  a  very  profound  exchange  of  opinions 
among  themselves,  and  then  we  were  remanded  to  our  prison 
again,  without  any  intimation  as  to  what  the  verdict  was;  and 
never,  from  that  day  to  this,  has  it  been  communicated  to  us,  or 
any  sentence  passed  upon  us,  though  we  have  seen  and  felt  some 
things  that  have  induced  us  to  believe  that  we  were  adjudged 
guilty. 

We  had  some  droll  specimens  of  humanity  among  us,  who, 
amid  all  our  trials,  occasionally  excited  a  flow  of  mirth,  which 
relieved  the  tediousness  of  our  confinement,  and  enabled  us  to 
look  with  more  stoic  philosophy  on  the  dark  spots  in  our  expe- 
rience. Among  these  fun-provoking  geniuses  was  Garret  Hicks, 
or,  as  he  was  commonly  called,  '*  Old  Hicks,"  a  coarse,  careless, 
independent  sort  of  a  fellow,  who  was  always  telling  some  big. 
dog  story,  and  displayed  a  wonderful  knowledge  of  the  marvel- 
lous achievements  of  the  canine  race.  When  he  was  arraigned 
for  trial,  his  uncouth  appearance  led  the  Judge-Advocate  to  sup- 
pose that  he  was  "  threepence  short  of  a  shilling,"  as  the  English 
say,  when  they  suspect  a  man  is  a  little  deficient  in  shrewdness. 

"  Well,  Hicks,"  said  the  Judge-Advocate,  "did  you  fight  any?" 

"  Yes,  I  fit  as  well  as  I  could,"  said  Hicks,  in  a  blunt,  indiffer- 
ent, care-for-nothing  manner. 

"  How  many  did  you  kill?" 

"  Well,  I  don't  know ;  I  guess  I  killed  as  many  of  them  as 
they  did  of  me." 

The  court  enjoyed  a  hearty  laugh,  at  this  happy  reply  of"  Old 
Hicks,"  and  finding  him  not  so  verdant  as  they  had  imagined, 
let  him  go  without  further  questioning.    , 

Each  of  the  five  rooms  in  which  we  were  confined  had  a  cap- 
tain, whose  duty  it  was  to  see  that  every  thing  was  kept  in  order. 
All  communications  to  the  Sheriff'  had  to  be  made  through  the 
medium  of  the  captains.  I  was  elevated  to  this  high  post  of 
honor  in  my  room,  which  brought  me  in  contact  with  the  Sheriff 
and  other  officers  every  day,  and,  in  the  course  of  our  long  con- 
finement, gave  me  an  opportunity  to  study  their  characters. 


CAI'TAIM     DAMEI.     I).    HEUSTIS. 


he  knew 
)  witness, 
e  was  not 
lawyer  to 
remain  in 

esses,  the 
3  minutes 
f  opinions 
>ur  prison 
was;  and 
i  to  us,  or 
1  felt  some 
adjudged 

r  us,  who, 
rth,  which 
ibled  us  to 
our  expe- 
ret  Hicks, 
5,  careless, 
some  big, 
le  marvel- 
arraigned 
ate  to  sup- 
le  English 
ewdness. 
ghtany?" 
t,  indiffer- 


f  them  as 

y  of  "Old 
imagined, 

ad  a  cap- 
in  order, 
rough  the 

h  post  of 
he  Sheriff 

long  cou- 
lters. 


Sheriff  McDonald  was  a  large,  stout,  and  good-looking  Scotch- 
man, lie  was  a  proud  man,  and  was  colonel  of  the  Glengary 
regiment.  Prompt  and  faithful  in  the  discharge  of  his  duty  as 
an  officer,  he  was  not  destitute  of  humane  feelings,  and  never 
insulted  us,  as  did  others,  with  ungcntlemanly  and  abusive  re- 
marks, calculated  to  irritate  and  annoy  us.  lie  was  in  the  habit 
of  using  quite  too  much  profane  language ;  in  fact,  he  rarely 
spoke  without  introducing  expressions  that  it  would  be  improper 
for  me  to  repeat ;  we  soon  got  used  to  his  oaths,  and  paid  no  at- 
tention to  them.  One  day  I  observed  to  him,  "  I  think  you 
ought  to  allow  us  a  little  money  to  spend  for  ourselves," 

"  G — d  d — n  your  soul,  you've  no  right  to  think ;  there  are 
men  paid  to  think  for  you,"  was  the  characteristic  reply. 

Some  time  before  we  were  sent  to  Fort  Henry,  Colonel  Brophy 
and  about  a  dozen  other  patriots  made  their  escape  from  the 
fort,  and  reached  the  United  States.  The  Sheriff,  a  little  nettled 
by  their  escape,  kept  a  close  eye  on  us,  lest  our  Yankee  inge- 
nuity should  also  devise  some  plan  for  eluding  his  grasp.  He 
often  told  us  that  it  was  our  business  to  get  away,  if  we  could, 
and  it  was  his  business  to  keep  us,  and,  with  a  tremendous  oath, 
he  would  assert  his  intention  of  doing  his  part  of  the  work  efTec- 
tually.  Every  day  our  rooms  were  examined,  and  great  precau- 
tions taken,  to  frustrate  any  scheme  that  we  might  contrive  to 
liberate  ourselves.  With  only  ordinary  vigilance,  it  is  doubtful 
whether  he  would  have  kept  us  as  long  as  he  did. 

Our  friends  from  the  United  States  were  frequently  over  to  see 
us,  and  by  various  stratagems  we  contrived  to  get  in  private 
money,  with  which,  through  the  agency  of  the  cook,  we  procured 
various  little  essential  articles  of  comfort.  By  previous  arrange- 
ment with  their  friends,  some  of  the  men  received  bank  bills 
sewed  up  in  clothing  sent  to  them. 

My  friends  made  an  arrangement  with  the  Catholic  priest,  who 
visited  us  frequently,  to  be  the  bearer  of  money  to  me.  In  this 
way  I  received  twenty-five  dollars  in  silver,  which  was  of  much 
service  to  me.  This  Catholic  priest  was  much  more  attentive  to 
us  than  the  Episcopalian  clergyman ;  he  would  converse  with  us 
freely,  without  reserve  or  cold  formality,  and  appeared  to  sympa- 
thize with  us  in  our  trials. 

One  morning,  during  the  winter,  while  we  were  waiting  for 
breakfast,  with  appetites  well  sharpened,  Henry  Shew,  a  very 
small  man,  but  full  of  life  and  motion,  offered  to  bet  that  he 
could  eat  five  men's  breakfasts  in  fifteen  minutes.  Here  was  a 
chance  for  fun,  if  nothing  else. 


80 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES    OP 


(( 


(( 


H '  k 


■,  5 


I  will  bet  you  a  coat  you  can't  do  it,"  said  one. 
Agreed,"  said  Shew. 


Others  staked  shirts,  handkerchiefs,  and  stocks.  Shew  ac- 
cepted the  offers,  and  four  of  us  were  to  give  up  our  breakfasts 
to  be  added  to  his  own,  to  enable  him  to  try  the  experiment. 
In  turning  them  into  a  large  tin  pan,  we  managed  to  smuggle  in 
an  extra  one,  making  six.  Shew  then  commenced  operations, 
while  the  rest  of  us  stood  by,  to  watch  the  progress  of  the  work. 
At  first  we  had  hopes  of  winning;  but  these  hopes  were  soon 
dissipated.  Before  the  expiration  of  the  time,  the  pan  was  scraped 
clean,  and  Shew  declared  he  could  have  eaten  more  with  ease. 
The  unfortunate  wights  who  had  bet  with  him,  had  to  console 
themselves  as  the  man  did  who  lost  his  nice  fat  rabbit,  and  after 
it  had  escaped,  concluded  it  was  rather  lean,  and  that  a  great 
quantity  of  butter  would  have  been  consumed  in  cooking  it ! 

At  various  times,  between  the  first  of  December  and  the  first 
of  May,  sixty-four  of  our  number  were  pardoned  and  sent  home 
to  the  United  States,  and  twenty-two  others  were  discharged 
without  a  trial,  making  in  all  eighty-six,  leaving  sixty  still  in 
captivity.  Some  time  in  the  spring,  twenty-five  of  the  latter,  in- 
cluding myself,  were  pardoned  by  Governor  Arthur,  and  an  order 
for  our  liberation  had  just  been  pUt  into  the  Sheriff's  hands, 
when  the  pardons  were  withdrawn,  and  we  were  reserved  for 
a  punishment  worse  than  death  itself  This  is  another  fact  going 
to  show  how  completely  we  were  subject  to  the  caprices  of  the 
unprincipled  mercenaries  of  royalty. 

My  cousin,  Mrs.  Skinner,  of  Watertown,  went  to  Toronto,  and 
had  an  interview  with  the  Governor,  Sir  George  Arthur,  in  the 
hope  of  aiding  numerous  petitions  which  had  been  sent  to  him 
by  my  friends  in  Jefferson  county,  praying  for  my  liberation. 
The  Governor  said  he  could  do  nothing,  as  the  whole  subject 
had  been  left  at  the  disposal  of  the  home  government.  When 
he  wished  to  send  men  to  the  gallows,  his  authority  was  undis- 
puted, and  he  not  only  refused  to  consult  the  home  government, 
but  denied  the  prisoners  a  trial  by  jury,  to  which  they  were  en- 
titled by  the  laws  of  England.  But  a  generous  act  of  clemency 
was  such  an  unusual  thing  with  him,  and  so  uncongenial  to  his 
nature,  that  he  must  needs  be  driven  to  its  performance  by  orders 
from  his  superiors !  I  am  inclined  to  think,  however,  that  the 
Governor  fabricated  the  story  which  he  told  Mrs.  Skinner,  to 
get  rid  of  the  strong  appeal  in  my  behalf 

Governor  Arthur  visted  us  once  during  our  imprisonment. 
He  was  a  short,  stout-built  m^n,  and  had  a  tyrannical  look  about 


' 


CAPTAIN     DAiNIEL     D.    IIEUSTIS. 


81 


' 


him,  which  did  not  belie  his  character.  He  put  several  ques- 
tions to  individual  prisoners,  and  when,  in  answer  to  one  ad- 
dressed to  me,  I  told  him  my  name,  he  said,  '*  I  recollect;  'Squire 
Gilbert,  of  Watertown,  has  written  to  Chief  Justice  Jones  respect- 
ing you."  Just  before  he  left,  he  made  a  brief  address  to  us;  in 
which,  among  other  things  not  so  complimentary,  he  iaid,  "  If 
you  had  been  fighting  in  the  right  cause,  you  would  have  been 
an  honor  to  your  country." 

The  ever  glorious  Fourth  of  July,  we  celebrated  as  well  as 
circumstances  would  permit.  Out  of  several  pocket  handker- 
chiefs a  flag  was  manufactured,  as  nearly  resembling  the  "  star- 
spangled  banner  "  as  we  could  conveniently  make  it.  This  em- 
blem of  freedom  and  national  independence  we  hoisted  in  our 
room,  taking  good  care  that  the  officers  did  not  get  a  peep  at  it. 
We  procured  some  lemons  and  sugar,  which  enabled  us  to  pass 
round  a  refreshing  bowl  of  lemonade.  We  then  let  off  our  toasts, 
in  which  the  heroes  of  '76  were  duly  remembered.  Their  success 
had  Sdved  them  from  the  gallows,  and  bequeathed  freedom  to 
their  posterity,  while  our  failure  had  procured  us  a  dungeon,  and 
riveted  the  chains  which  bound  the  hapless  Canadians  as  vassals 
of  the  British  throne.  If  we  had  been  tortured  with  the  thought 
that  our  own  cowardice  had  been  the  cause  of  our  defeat,  we 
should  indeed  have  been  the  most  miserable  of  men.  But  we 
had  faced  the  enemy,  as  did  the  heroes  of  Bunker  Hill,  if  not 
with  equal  success  in  the  final  result,  at  least  in  the  same  spirit 
and  for  the  attainment  of  the  same  object,  and  we  saw  no  cause 
for  self-reproach. 

The  reanimating  season  of  spring,  and  the  hot  and  sultry 
days  of  summer,  came  and  passed,  and  we  still  remained  shut 
up  in  the  gloomy  prison.  How  we  longed  for  an  opportunity  to 
exercise  in  the  open  fields,  where  the  pure  air  of  heaven  would 
invigorate  our  bodies  and  revive  our  drooping  spirits,  and  where 
the  beauties  of  smiling  nature  would  delight  the  eye  and  refresh 
the  heart!  The  blessing  of  personal  freedom,  like  all  other 
blessings,  is  never  appreciated  until  we  feel  its  loss.  The  sick 
man  can  estimate  the  value  of  health ;  so  can  the  prisoner,  who 
has  passed  months  in  a  dark  and  dismal  cell,  living  on  the  mean- 
est food,  and  breathing  the  foulest  atmosphere,  appreciate  the 
worth  of  freedom.  To  him,  wealth,  honor,  and  renown  are  but 
idle  shadows !  His  soul  pants  for  liberty  !  Give  him  that,  and 
his  joyous  spirit  will  leap  forth  into  the  world,  in  raptures  of  de- 
light! 

4* 


it* 


82 


if     ' 


t    . 


'    % 


I 


I 


\^ 


\% 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Removal  from  Fort  Henry  to  Quebec  —  Embarkation  on  board 
the  Ship  Buffalo — An  Account  of  the  Battle  of  Windsor — 
Description  of  the  Buffalo — Division  of  the  Prisoners  into 
Messes — Our  Manner  of  Living — A  Storm — Scheme  to  Cap- 
ture the  Ship — Death  of  Asa  Priest — A  JFuneral  at  Sea — 
Arrival  at  Rio  Janeiro — Yankee  Seamanship — A  Flogging — 
Doubling  the  Cape  —  Van  Dieman's  Land. 

On  the  morning  of  the  23d  of  September,  Deputy-Sheriff 
Richardson  came  into  our  room  and  told  us  that  we  were  to  be 
removed  from  Fort  Henry,  and  wanted  us  to  get  ready  for  a  start. 
Our  destination  we  could  not  ascertain,  and  this  was  the  first  in- 
timation we  had  received  of  our  removal.  We  had  scarcely 
finished  packing  up  our  clothing,  when  several  blacksmiths  came 
in  with  irons  to  fasten  around  our  ankles,  and  handcuffs  for  our 
wrists.  We  were  to  be  chained  together,  in  couples,  and  had 
the  privilege  of  choosing  our  mates.  I  went  with  O.  W.  Smith. 
The  irons  were  riveted  on  our  ankles  by  the  blacksmiths,  but  the 
handcuffs  were  fastened  with  padlocks.  There  was  a  key  to 
every  padlock,  though  one  key  would  fit  them  all.  I  put  the 
handcuffs  on  to  Smith  and  myself,  and  then  put  the  key  in  my 
pocket. 

After  the  sons  of  Vulcan  had  thus  invested  us  in  a  complete 
uniform  of  iron  jewelry,  we  were  marched  from  the  fort  to  the 
wharf,  escorted  by  a  company  of  the  83d  regiment,  and  accom- 
panied by  Sheriff  McDonald  and  three  Deputy-Sheriffs,  On  ar- 
riving at  the  wharf  our  names  were  called,  and  we  were  then 
huddled  on  board  a  canal-boat.  In  addition  to  the  sixty  Prescott 
prisoners,  there  were  eighteen  who  had  been  taken  at  the  battle 
of  Windsor,  and  three  who  had  been  convicted  of  crimes  in  the 
courts  of  justice,  so  called.  A  small  steamer  towed  the  canal- 
boat  through  the  Rideau  canal  to  Montreal,  and  we  had  a  long, 
tedious  passage.  At  night,  we  had  the  soft  side  of  a  plank  to 
repose  on,  and  iron  fetters  for  bed-clothes!  The  key  in  my 
pocket  enabled  me  to  relieve  myself  and  some  of  my  companions 
of  tlie  handcuffs,  during  the  hours  of  darkness,  which  bettered 
ou-r  co»&dition  considerably. 


) 


' 


ADVENTURES     OF     CAPTAIN     HEUSTIS. 


83 


m  board 
Indsor — 
riers  into 
t  to  Cap- 
it  Sea — 
gging— 


y-Sheriff 
jre  to  be 
ir  a  start. 
B  first  iii- 

scarcely 
ths  came 
s  for  our 

and  had 

,  Smith, 
but  the 
key  to 

put  the 
sy  in  my 


complete 
t  to  the 
accom- 
On  ar- 
re  then 
*rescott 
le  battle 
s  in  the 
!  canal- 
a  long, 
lank  to 
in  my 
panions 
jettereJ 


I 


On  the  evening  of  the  27th  we  arrived  at  Montreal,  and  were 
immediately  transferred  to  a  British  steamer,  bound  to  Quebec, 
where  we  arrived  at  night  on  the  28th.  As  we  approached  the 
latter  place,  our  attention  was  directed  to  a  ship  anchored  off  the 
city.  It  was  just  high  water,  and  the  wind,  blowing  lightly,  had 
canted  the  vessel  across  the  stream,  so  that  I  had  a  broadside 
view  of  her.  She  was  a  vessel  of  about  700  tons,  and  loomed  too 
high  out  of  the  water  to  be  a  ship  of  war,  although  she  mounted 
guns,  and  had  a  long  pendant  flying  from  the  main,  which  made 
it  evident  that  she  was  not  employed  in  the  merchant  service. 
Approaching  nearer,  I  could  see  her  topgallant  forecastle  crowd- 
ed with  sailors  and  soldiers,  and  then  the  thought  crossed  my 
mind  that  she  was  a  convict  ship,  destined  to  transport  us  to  some 
penal  colony.  This  impression  w.as  soon  confirmed.  We  found, 
as  we  went  alongside  of  her,  that  she  was  iudeed  the  convict- 
ship  Buffalo,  commanded  by  Captain  Wood.  She  had  royal 
yards  across  fore  and  aft,  and  the  blue  peter  flying  at  the  fore, 
(a  signal  for  sea,)  the  transports'  pendant  at  the  main,  and  the 
English  red  ensign  at  the  mizen  peak. 

The  irons,  which  had  severely  tormented  us  all  the  way  from 
Kingston,  were  taken  off  on  the  deck  of  the  steamer,  and  we 
were  then  transferred  to  the  Buffalo.  As  I  passed  from  the 
steamer  to  the  ship's  deck,  I  saw  Sheriff  McDonald  standing  at 
the  gangway,  and  having  my  witch  with  me  I  inquired  of  him 
whether  I  should  be  permitted  to  retain  it,  and  if  not,  I  wished 
him  to  send  it  to  my  friends.  Ik^  gazed  upon  me  for  a  moment 
with  a  look  of  the  deepeot  c  vnirisei^^tion,  and  in  faltering  ac- 
cents told  me  to  keep  it,  at  llie  sam';  iime  bursting  into  tears  ! 
My  watch  had  been  sent  ic  me,  while  in  prison,  by  my  friends. 
1  could  not  have  kept  it  H  •  >ni  the  greedy  grasp  of  the  military 
thieves  who  made  us  prisoneia,  if  I  had  carried  it  at  the  battle 
of  Prescott.  Sheriff  McDonald,  I  have  since  been  informed,  died 
in  one  of  our  lunatic  asylums,  only  a  short  time  after  we  parted 
with  him  on  board  the  Buffalo. 

After  being  thoroughly  searched,  w6  were  passed  along  for- 
ward and  down  into  the  hold.  Here  wg  found  fifly-eight  patriots 
Jind  two  civil  prisoners,  from  Lower  Canada,  who  were  to  be  our 
companions  during  the  voyage,  and  fellow  sufferers  in  a  land  of 
exile.     The  whole  number  of  prisoners  was  141. 

The  following  are  the  names  of  the  Prescott  prisoners ;  those 
marked  with  a  star  have  since  died :  David  Allen,  Orlin  Blodget, 
John  Bradley,  Thomas  Baker,  John  Berry,  Chaunccy  Bugby, 
Geoige  T.  Brown,  Lysander  Curtis,*  Robert  G.  Collins,  John 


84 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTUUKS     OI" 


Crookhite,  Hugh  Call*oun,  Leonard  Delano,  Moses  A.  Dutcher, 
Luther  Darby,  Aaron  Dresser,  Elon  Fellows,  Michael  Fraer, 
William  Gates,  Emanuel  Garrison,  Gideon  A.  Goodrich,  Neltiuu 
Griggs,  Jerry  Griggs,  John  Gilman,  Daniel  D.  Heustis,  Garret 
Hicks,  David  House,  James  Inglish,  Joseph  Lefore,  Daniel  Lis- 
comb,  Andrew  Leeper,*  Hiram  Loop,  Calvin  Matthews,  Andrew 
Moore,  Jehiel  H.  Martin,  John  Morriset,  Chauncey  Mutthcwf, 
Foster  Martin,*  Alson  Owen,*  Asa  Priest,*  Ira  Polly,  Jacob 
Paddock,  James  Pierce,  William  Reynolds,  Asa  H.  Richardson, 
Solomon  Reynolds,  John  Swausburg,  Hiram  Sharp,  Henry  Shew, 
Orin  W.  Smith,  Joseph  W.  Stewart,  Thomas  Stockton,*  Joseph 
Thompson,  John  Thomas,  Stephen  S.  Wright,  Nathan  Whiting, 
Riley  Whitney,  Edward  A.  Wilson,  Samuel  Washburn,  Bemis 
Woodbury,  Patrick  White— 60. 

As  before  stated,  there  were  eighteen  prisoners  among  us  who 
had  been  taken  at  the  battle  of  Windsor,  and,  as  I  have  given  no 
account  of  that  battle,  a  brief  description  of  the  fight  will  not  be 
out  of  place  in  this  connection.  In  the  latter  part  of  November, 
1838,  several  hundred  men  left  Cleveland,  Ohio,  in  small  par- 
ties, and  assembled  at  Brest,  Michigan,  where  they  recruited  for 
a  short  time.  The  expedition  had  bern  planned  principally  by 
refugees  quartered  at  Cleveland,  The  weather  being  cold,  and 
the  authorities  of  the  United  States,  as  usual,  manifesting  a  strong 
disposition  to  interfere,  many  became  disheartened  at  what  they 
considered  tardiness  on  the  part  of  their  leaders,  and  began  to 
desert.  The  p:itriots  in  Michigan  were  now  for  the  first  time 
.isked  to  join  the  expedition,  which  they  were  willing  to  do,  but 
time  was  necessary  to  call  out  their  force.  The  capture  of  thir- 
teen boxes  of  muskets  belonging  to  the  party,  by  the  government 
authorities,  and  other  unfavorable  events,  conspired  to  make  the 
men  impatient,  and  they  then  insisted  on  crossing  immediately, 
without  waiting  for  reinforcements  from  Michigan.  General 
Bierce,  the  commander-in-chief,  told  them  it  would  be  folly  to 
go  without  an  extensive  addition  to  their  numbers ;  but  General 
Putnam,  a  Canadian  refugee,  and  Colonel  Harvell,  a  Kentuckian, 
pursued  an  opposite  course.  On  the  4th  of  December,  three 
weeks  after  the  battle  of  Prescott,  one  hundred  and  sixty-four 
men  crossed  over  from  Detroit,  and  landed  on  the  Canada  shore. 
In  two  divisions,  they  marched  to  Windsor,  attacked  the  military 
barracks,  shouting  "  Remember  Prescott,"  and  crossing  guns 
with  the  enemy,  through  the  windows,  fought  with  determined 
courage  for  about  forty  minutes,  until  the  barracks  were  on  fire, 
and  then  the  British  force  surrendered,  having  lost  about  thirty 


I 


ii 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL     D.     IILUSTIS. 


85 


utcher, 
Fraer, 
NeUou 
Garret 
itel  Lis- 
Andrew 
Athcws, 
,  Jacob 
lardson, 
y  Shew, 
'  Joseph 
Vhitin^, 
i,  Bemis 

;  us  who 
riven  no 
11  not  be 
>veinber, 
lall  par- 
uited  for 
[pally  by 
^old,  and 
a  strong 
hat  they 
)egan  to 
rst  time 
do,  but 
of  thir- 
ernment 
[lake  the 
3d  lately, 
General 
folly  to 
General 
tuckian, 
three 
xty-four 
:i  shorn, 
military 

Ig    gUIIH 

r  mined 
on  fire, 
t  thirty 


'r» 


men  in  killed  and  wounded.     Eight  of  the  patriots  were  killed, 
and  seven  wounded. 

The  latter  were  conveyed,  in  small  boats,  to  Detroit,  where 
General  Hugh  Brady,  of  the  United  States  army,  attempted  to 
prevent  their  landing ;  but  the  people  on  the  wharf,  disregarding 
his  drawn  sword,  and  threats  to  cut  them  down,  soon  convinced 
him  that  a  ducking  in  the  river  would  be  the  consequence  of 
persisting  in  his  inhuman  conduct. 

Securing  their  prisoners,  the  patriots  resumed  their  march, 
and,  on  reaching  the  centre  of  the  town,  encountered  the  troops 
1  from  Sandwich.  A  fire  was  opened  by  both  parties,  and  the 
British  were  soon  driven  back  into  an  orchard,  where  they  took 
jjosition  behind  a  fence,  while  the  patriots  made  their  way 
through  a  gate,  incurring  a  most  deadly  fire.  Then  followed  a 
skirmishing  fight,  until  the  British  were  reinforced  by  200  regu- 
lars from  Maiden.  This  reinforcement  cut  off  the  rear-guard  of 
the  patriots,  and  forced  Putnam  to  retreat  to  the  woods  back  of 
the  town.  On  the  retreat,  his  party  were  exposed  to  a  very  hot 
fire,  and  General  Putnam  himself  was  shot  dead  in  the  act  of 
getting  over  a  fence.  His  aid  likewise  fell,  with  the  patriot 
standard  in  his  hands,  which  he  wrapped  around  his  body  and 
expired.  The  gallant  Harvell  refused  to  retreat,  but  draw  ng 
his  bowie-knife,  faced  the  enemy,  declaring  that  he  would  never 
surrender.  He  was  instantly  shot  down.  A  few  of  the  party 
escaped  to  the  American  shore,  some  perished  in  the  woods,  and 
the  remainder  were  hunted  and  captured  by  the  British  and  In- 
dians. Four  of  them  were  made  prisoners  in  the  neighborhood. 
Of  these  Colonel  John  Prince,  a  fiend  in  human  shape,  in  his 
olficial  account,  remarks  :  "  Of  the  brigands  and  pirates,  twenty- 
one  were  killed,  besides  four,  who  were  brought  in  just  at  the 
close,  and  immediately  after  the  engagement;  all  of  whom  I  or- 
dered to  he  shot  upon  the  spot,  and  it  was  done  accordingly." 

The  rear-guard  of  the  patriots,  which  had  been  separated  from 
the  main  body  on  the  arrival  of  the  regulars,  from  Maiden,  seized 
upon  such  canoes  as  they  could  find,  and  crossed  over  to  Hog 
island,  where  Major  Payne,  of  the  United  States  army,  who  had 
command  of  the  steamboat  Erie,  ordered  his  men  to  fire  upon 
them,  which  was  done  !  Several  American  citizens  only  escaped 
death  by  taking  refuge  behind  the  trees,  so  sharp  was  this  firing 
on  the  part  of  United  States  troops! 

Of  the  prisoners  taken,  Joshua  G.  Doan,  Daniel  (or  Charles) 
Kennedy,  Cornelius  Cunningham,  Hiram  B.  Linn,  Davis  D. 
Bedford,  Albert  Clark,  and  Julius  Perley,  were  tried  by  court- 


86 


CAI'TIVITV     ANI>     ADVENTURES     OF 


k' 


martial  and  executed  at  London,  Upper  Canada,  and  eighteen 
others  became  our  companions  on  board  the  Buffalo.  The  fol- 
lowing is  a  list  of  their  names,  those  marked  with  a  star  having  since 
died:  — 

Names.  Age.  Residence. 

James  M.  Atchison, 28  ..  London,  Upper  Canada. 

Henry  V.  Barnum, 25  . .  Long  Point,  "  '♦ 

James  DeWitt  Fero, 25..  "  '«  " 

John  L.  Gutridge, 30  . .  Cleveland^  Ohio. 

Robert  Marsh, 25  . .  Detroit,  Michigan. 

Michael  Murray, 32  ..  Lockport,  New  York. 

William  Nottage,* 38  . .  Amherst,  Ohio. 

Samuel  Snow, 38  ...  Strongville,  Ohio, 

Eleazer  Stevens, 2'    ..  Lebanon,  New  York. 

John  Sprague, 23  . .  Amherst,  Ohio. 

Riley  M.  Stewart, 31  ..  Avon,  «' 

Alvin  B.  Sweet, 22  . .  Windficld,  New  York. 

John  H.  Simons,** 23  ..  Lockport,  ** 

Chauncey  Shel  ".on, 57  ..  Utica,  Michigan. 

John  B.  Tirrell, 24  . .  St.  Thomas,  Upper  Canada. 

John  C.  Williams, 38  . .  Rochester,  New  York. 

James  R.  Williams,*  ....  24  . .  Cleveland,  Ohio. 

E.  C.  Woodman, 42  . .  London,  Upper  Canada. 

I  account  for  the  182  men  engaged  in  the  battle  of  Prescott 
as  follows :  Killed,  17 ;  wounded,  and  afterwards  died,  3 ;  es- 
caped before  the  surrender,  5;  executed,  11:  pardoned,  64; 
discharged  without  a  trial,  22 ;  transported  in  the  Buffalo,  60  ; 
total,  182. 

A  brief  description  of  the  Buffalo  will  be  necessary  in  order  to 
convey  to  the  reader  an  idea  of  our  new  home.  She  had  a  full 
poop-deck,  which  extended  before  the  mizenmast,  and  under 
which  were  the  great  cabin  and  the  state-rooms  for  the  officers. 
Forward  there  was  a  topgallant  forecastle,  divided  into  two  gal- 
leys, or  cook  bouses.  Before  the  mainmast,  and  abaft  the  fore- 
mast, there  were  two  strong  gratings  or  barricades,  of  oak,  lined 
with  iron,  and  about  ( jght  feet  high.  In  the  midships  of  this 
space,  ih^  long  boat  and  spare  spars  were  stowed,  leaving  about 
eight  feet  space  of  gangways  on  each  side.  On  the  quarter-dnck, 
she  mounted  six  nine-pounders,  carriage  guns,  but  as  she  was 
pierced  with  ports  fore  and  aft,  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that 
she  had  guns  below,  which,  if  required,  could  easily  be  hoisted 
on  deck,  and  mounted.  Her  between-decks,  and  the  squares 
of  her  hatchways,  were  also  gratined  off,  having  only  small  doors 
of  communication  with  the  deck  above.  Forward  there  was  a 
sick  bay,  or  doctor's  shop,  and  the  other  parts  of  the  deck  were 
fitted  for  the  accommodation  of  the  sailors,  marines,  and  soldiers,. 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    HF.USTIS. 


87 


,  and  eighteen 
ialo.  The  fol- 
iar having  since 


lada. 


k. 

k. 

rk. 

Canada, 
rk. 

lada. 

tie  of  Prescott 
ds  died,  3 ;  es- 
pardoned,  64 ; 
e  Buffalo,  60; 

ary  in  order  to 

She  had  a  full 

3st,  and  under 

or  the  officers. 

into  two  gal- 
abaft  the  fore- 
,  of  oak,  lined 
idships  of  this 
leaving  about 
2  quarter-dr»ck, 
ut  as  she  was 

suppose  that 
sily  be  hoisted 
d  the  squares 
ily  small  doors 
d  there  was  a 
the  deck  were 
,  and  soldiers,. 


each  class,  however,  occupying  distinct  divisions.  In  the  hold, 
about  seven  feet  below  the  between-decks,  was  a  platform-deck, 
constructed  of  rough  deals,  laid  on  the  ballast,  and  stanchioned 
down.  In  the  wings  were  two  tiers  of  berths,  each  berth  designed 
for  the  reception  of  four  persons.  A  grating  extended  fore 
and  aft,  and  the  squares  of  the  hatchways  were  also  barricaded. 
This  place  was  to  be  the  home  of  140  prisoners,  during  a  long 
and  monotonous  voyage  at  sea.  It  did  not  afford  room  for  us 
all  to  stand,  and  some  were  obliged  to  occupy  the  berths,  day 
k  and  night,  being  relieved  at  suitable  intervals.  We  had  no  air 
'  except  what  came  down  the  hatchway.  Abafl,  the  hold  was 
stowed  with  stores,  provisions,  and  water.  Such  was  the  ship 
Buffalo.  The  officers,  sailors,  soldiers,  and  marines,  together 
with  a  few  women  and  children,  numbered  141,  making  the 
whole  number  on  board  281. 

The  ship  was  immediately  taken  in  tow  by  a  steamer,  and  we 
glided  swiflly  down  the  River  St.  Lawrence.  We  then  had  an 
opportunity  of  writing  to  our  friends,  which  several  of  our  com- 
pany gladly  embraced.  In  brief  letters,  I  bid  farewell  to  those 
near  and  dear  to  me,  informing  them  of  my  situation,  and  the 
probable  destination  of  the  ship.  Our  letters  were  forwarded  by 
the  pilot,  and  those  I  wrote  were  duly  received  by  my  friends. 
A  dark  and  gloomy  prospect  was  now  before  us;  we  were 
captives,  and  a  life  of  slavery,  under  cruel  taskmaster;,  in  a 
distant  penal  colony,  was  to  be  our  future  destiny.  But  J.  never 
despaired  of  visiting  again  the  home  of  my  childhood,  and  the 
friends  I  loved.  This  hope,  more  or  less  strong  in  all  our  hearts, 
served  to  buoy  up  our  spirits,  in  some  measure,  during  the  whole 
of  our  imprisonment.  But,  alas  !  many  of  our  companions  closed 
their  eyes  in  death,  without  realizing  it !  They  sleep  in  a 
land  of  strangers,  with  no  stone  to  mark  the  spot  where  they 
lie,  and  no  kind  friend  to  shed  a  sorrowing  tear  over  their  graves  I 
The  prisoners  were  divided  into  messes.  Each  mess  consist- 
ed of  twelve  men,  who  were  directed  to  choose  from  their  own 
number  a  captain.  I  was  selected  for  that  office  by  the  ninth 
mess,  and  my  duty  consisted  in  superintending  the  labor  assigned 
to  my  messmates,  and  in  the  exercise  of  a  general  supervision 
in  regard  to  them.  Our  platform-deck  was  holystoned,  and  our 
quarters  cleaned,  every  morning,  each  mess  in  its  turn  perform- 
ing that  duty.  Our  berth-boards,  too,  were  occasionally  white- 
washed ;  but,  notwithstanding  these  salutary  regulations,  our 
quarters  were  infested  with  vermin,  such  as  cockroaches,  fleas, 
and  the  like.     The  ship  had  probably  been  employed  in  the 


88 


CM'TlVrry     AMJ     ADVEiNTlUliS     OF 


sugar  trade,  in  which  she  had  taken  on  board,  as  usual,  an  am- 
ple supply  of  vermin  to  last  her  as  long  as  she  would  be  able  to 
float.  At  first,  we  wet-holystoned  our  deck,  by  sprinkling  water 
and  sand  on  the  plauks,  and  then  kneeling  and  rubbing  them 
with  freestones,  until  every  particle  of  dirt  had  been  loosened, 
after  which  they  were  washed  with  water,  and  then  dried  up  with 
swabs.  The  ship's  doctor  soon  discovered  that  wet  holystoning 
was  injurious  to  our  health,  and  he  therefore  substituted  the  dry 
operation,  which  consisted  in  rubbing  the  deck  as  before,  without 
using  water.  The  dust  created  by  this  method  of  cleaning,  was 
almost  as  bad  as  the  dampness  of  wet  holystoning,  but  cleanli- 
ness was  indispensable,  and  the  last  alternative  was  adopted  and 
adhered  to  throughout  the  voyage. 

Our  fare  was  scanty  and  bad.  We  lived,  to  use  a  sailor's 
phrase,  six  upon  four ;  that  is,  the  usual  allowance  for  four  ma- 
rines had  to  serve  six  prisoners.  Skilly,  composed  of  oat-meal, 
bran,  and  dust,  mixed  with  boiling  water,  was  our  breakfast;  and 
this  stuff  was  almost  as  black  as  the  kids  in  which  it  was  cerved 
out.  We  had  neither  plates  nor  spoons,  to  eat  with,  but  were 
under  the  necessity  of  dipping  a  piece  of  biscuit  into  the  kid, 
and  licking  therefrom  the  skilly  which  adhered  to  it.  Each  mess 
had  its  kid,  contaming  six  quarts,  or  a  pint  for  each  man,  around 
which,  at  meal  times,  a  circle  was  formed,  to  enable  us  all  to 
partake  of  the  glorious  feast !  We  could  heartily  exclaim,  in 
the  language  of  Wackford  Squeers,  as  he  gave  the  well-diluted 
milk  to  one  of  the  pupils  of  his  celebrated  school  at  Do-the-boys 
Hall,  "here's  richness!"  For  dinner,  we  had  pork  and  pea 
soup  one  day,  and  beef  and  duff  the  next.  The  pork  was 
not  as  bad  as  it  might  have  been,  but  the  beef  had  doubtless 
served  an  apprenticeship  of  seven  years  at  Gibraltar,  besides 
going  two  or  three  voyages  around  the  world,  before  it  was 
opened  for  our  use.  It  was  salt  as  brine,  hard  as  Pharaoh's 
heart,  and  about  as  nutritious  as  wooden  nutmegs.  For  supper, 
we  h<id  some  fair  cocoa.  Add  to  the  foregoing  luxuries  half  a 
pound  of  biscuit,  and  a  quart  of  water,  for  each  man,  and  you 
have  our  daily  bill  of  fare  during  the  voyage.  I  cannot,  however, 
leave  the  biscuit  without  mentioning  its  quality.  Whether  it  was 
originally  composed  of  rye,  ground  peas,  oat-meal,  or  of  all  to- 
gether, I  cannot  positively  assert.  It  was  so  hard,  coarse,  and 
unpalatable,  that  there  would  have  been  no  danger  of  our  grow- 
ing dyspeptic  upon  it,  if  it  had  been  perfectly  clean.  But  when 
we  found  there  was  a  peculiar  feline  odor  attached  to  it,  indi- 
cating that  it  had  been  in  the  vicinity  of  cats,  we  felt  little  inch- 


I 


,  ail  am- 
;  able  to 
ig  water 
ng  them 
oosenod, 

up  with 
ystoning 
[  the  dry 
,  without 
ing,  was 

cleanli- 
pted  and 

.  sailor's 
four  ma- 
3at-meal, 
asl;  and 
IS  served 
but  were 
the  kid, 
ach  mess 
,  around 
us  all  to 
laim,  in 
1-diluted 
•the-boys 
and  pea 
ork  was 
oubtless 
besides 
it  was 
araoh's 
supper, 
half  a 
md  you 
^owever, 
ir  it  was 
all  to- 
rse, and 
^r  grow- 
it  when 
ft,  indi- 
te incli- 


I 


, 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL    D.    HEUSTIR. 


89 


nation  to  eat  it.  On  this  disgusting  fare,  our  bodies  and  souls 
were  expected  to  keep  company  during  a  long  and  changeful 
voyage. 

Before  we  cleared  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  the  ship  encoun- 
tered a  violent  storm.  Although  down  in  the  ship's  hold,  und 
consequently  less  exposed  to  motion  than  those  on  deck,  we 
could  hear  the  rushing  of  the  waves,  as  they  bounded  to  leeward, 
ur  broke  in  foaming  fury  over  the  deck.  The  shrill  screaming 
of  the  boatswain's  whistle,  —  followed  by  his  hoarse  voice,  bellow- 
ing forth,  "  All  hands  roef  topsails,"  or  some  other  order,  —  rose 
liigh  and  dismal  amid  the  wailing  of  the  tempest.  Our  situation 
below  was  extremely  nauseous  and  suffocating.  The  hatches 
were  battened  down,  which  excluded  the  air,  and  two  thirds  of 
our  number  were  vomiting  with  sea-sickness.  I  was  hue  of  the 
first  to  be  attacked  by  this  horrid  sickness,  and  for  more  than 
one  hundred  days  it  kept  me  in  misery.  I  can  truly  say,  that  of 
all  the  disagreeable  sensations  I  ever  experienced,  not  one  can 
be  compared  with  sea-sickness. 

The  storm  gradually  subsided  into  a  steady  breeze  from  the 
northward,  and  once  more  the  gallant  ship,  under  a  press  of  sail, 
was  gliding  along  to  the  southeastward.  We  were  allowed  one 
hour  on  deck  each  day,  twenty-four  at  a  time,  and  in  this  hour, 
on  regular  days,  we  had  to  wash  our  clothes.  The  part  of  the 
deck  allotted  to  us  was  amidships,  on  the  lee  side,  between  the 
grutined  barricades,  already  described.  On  the  long-boat  amid- 
ships, on  the  quarter-deck  and  forecastle,  and  at  every  other 
point  that  commanded  a  view  of  us,  armed  sentinels  were  placed, 
whose  duty  it  was  to  watch  our  motions.  When  we  wanted  to 
smoke,  a  light  was  passed  to  us  through  the  forward  grating; 
upon  no  pretence  whatever  were  any  of  us  allowed  outside  of  the 
barriers  that  separated  us  from  the  rest  of  the  ship's  company. 
For  several  days  after  the  recent  storm,  I  felt  too  sick  to  take 
much  interest  in  what  was  transpiring  around  me,  when  on  deck, 
but  I  could  not  &.void  reflecting  upon  the  loneliness  of  our  situa- 
tion on  the  waste  of  waters  by  which  we  were  surrounded.  Day 
followed  day,  and  still  the  scene  was  unchanged ;  sky  and  water 
bounded  the  view,  above  and  around  us.  The  weather  was 
rough  and  variable,  after  we  cleared  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence, 
and  the  ship  made  slow  progress  to  the  southward.  To  my  mind, 
there  appeared  little  hope  of  escape  from  the  doom  that  awaited 
us.  It  was  said,  by  some  of  the  more  sanguine  among  us,  that 
as  the  ship  must  traverse  more  than  half  the  ocean,  some  lucky 
accident  might  occur,  that  would  restore   us  to  liberty.     As 


^If 


B     ) 


I 


i  i<  ■ 


I- 


III 


iJil 


in  i 

?  '1 


1: 


I 


;  ) 


■J 


90 


CAPTIVITY     AND     AnVENTITIlF.fl     OF 


drowning  men  cnt,ch  at  strnws,  so  docs  t!\c  fettered  prisoner  stand 
ready  to  jjrasp  tho  first  shadow  which  promises  deliverance. 

We  had  not  hcen  U)u.:  at  sea  before  we  discovered  that  we 
were  not  rorrnrded  ns  felmis  hy  the  ship's  company,  and  although 
we  were  narrowly  guarded,  no  one  lolt  himself  disgraced  by 
holding  familiar  conversation  with  us,  when  an  opportunity  of- 
fered, while  we  wore  on  deck.  Having  a  little  money  left,  sev- 
eral of  us  bought  mess  utensils,  such  as  spoons,  knives,  and  pan- 
nakins,  from  the  soldiers  who  kept  guard  over  us.  In  this  way, 
after  a  tinie,  we  were  enabled  to  eat  our  food  more  like  men. 
This  addition  to  our  comfort  soon  created  a  stir  among  the 
sailors,  who,  as  we  increased  our  stores,  found  that  theirs  dimin- 
ished in  the  same  proportion.  It  turned  out  that  the  soldiers 
had  stolen  from  the  sailors  the  articles  they  had  sold  to  us.  This 
was  reported  to  the  officer  of  the  deck,  who  immediately  com- 
pelled us  to  return  our  newly-acquired  table  furniture  to  the 
rightful  owners.  Not  disheartened  by  this  summary  proceeding, 
we  again  optned  trade  with  the  soldiers,  and  soon  supplied  our- 
selves with  a  similar  assortment  of  mess  utensils,  which  we  were 
allowed  to  keep. 

Among  our  number  were  several  sea-faring  men,  who  had 
closeiy  examined  the  various  arrangements  of  the  ship,  and  had 
distantly  sounded  the  disposition  of  the  sailors  towards  the 
prisoners.  These  men,  after  studying  the  characters  of  their 
messmates,  cautiously  communicated  to  such  as  they  thought 
could  be  relied  upon,  a  scheme  for  taking  possession  of  the  ship. 
Such  of  our  mess  as  were  made  acquainted  with  the  plan,  pledged 
themselves  to  cooperate,  heart  and  hand,  in  the  undertaking. 
The  utmost  secrecy  was  enjoined,  until  the  arrangements  should 
be  finally  completed,  and  a  proper  organization  effected. 

The  night  at  last  arrived  on  which  the  arrangements  of  our 
daring  enterprise  were  matured,  preparatory  to  carrying  them 
into  effect  the  next  morning.  Notwithstanding  we  were  prohib- 
ited from  leaving  our  beds,  afler  eight  o'clock,  and  were  watched 
by  an  armed  sentinel,  who  had  a  light  placed  in  such  a  position 
that  he  could  observe  all  our  motions,  one  of  the  principal  leaders 
managed  to  crawl  from  berth  to  berth,  for  the  purpose  of  assign- 
ing to  each  the  duty  expected  of  him  the  next  morning. 

In  the  morning,  if  the  chance  of  success  was  in  our  favor,  the 
leader  of  the  party  whose  turn  it  was  on  deck,  by  a  concerted 
sign,  was  to  communicate  the  fact  to  those  who  followed ;  then, 
as  the  last  man  was  passing  through  the  door,  an  iTnpediment  to 
'ts  closing  was  to  be  insertrd,  and  while  the  sentinel's  attention 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL     D.    IIEUSTIS. 


91 


oner  stand 
ancR. 

d  that  wft 
]  although 
crruccd  by 
rtunity  of- 
y  left,  sev- 
,  and  pan- 
I  this  way, 
like  men. 
imong  the 
;irs  dimin- 
le  soldiers 
I  us.  This 
lately  com- 
Lire  to  the 
irocceding, 
)plied  our- 
;h  we  were 

,  who  had 
),  and  had 
wards  the 
of  their 
thought 
the  ship, 
m,  pledged 
dertaking. 
nts  should 
d. 

nts  of  our 
ing  them 
sre  prohib- 
e  watched 
a  position 
)al  leaders 
of  assign- 
favor,  the 
concerted 
'ed;  then, 
tdiment  to 
attention 


was  engaged  in  removing  it,  he  was  to  be  ."Seized,  disarmed, 
gagged,  and  thrust  back  into  the  hold,  which  would  cnnbin  thone 
below  to  rush  hastily  on  deck.  In  the  mean  time,  those  already 
up,  leaving  a  guard  of  six  men  to  protect  the  fore  hatchway,  were 
to  rush  aft,  in  a  body,  secure  the  small-arms  racked  in  front  of 
the  poop,  block  up  the  main  hatchway,  cabin  doors,  and  every 
outlet  from  below,  except  the  fore  hatchway,  which  would  be  in 
our  possession.  Serious  opj>  ^sition  from  the  sailors  was  not  nx- 
.  pected ;  besides,  only  one  w  'i  would  be  on  deck,  and  ns  for 
1  the  greater  part  of  the  soldi,  .s  and  marines,  they  would  also  be 
below,  leaving  only  the  regular  sentinels  and  the  officers  of  tho 
deck,  at  different  points,  to  be  overcome.  The  possession  of  one 
side  of  the  deck  would  be  sufficient  to  enable  us  to  keep  the 
communication  open  below,  until  i\\\  our  comrades  were  up,  and 
then,  even  if  all  the  watch  and  officers  were  armed,  we  could  not 
fail  of  clearing  the  decks,  by  a  simultaneous  rush  fore  and  ail, 
armed  with  belaying-pins,  heavers,  boarding-pikes,  or  whatever 
small-arms  we  could  capture.  We  knew,  moreover,  that  one  of 
the  great  guns  was  always  loaded  with  blank  cartridge,  as  a  sig- 
nal gun,  into  which  a  cannister  of  grape  could  soon  be  insertocl, 
and  then,  pointed  aft,  it  could  easily  command  the  cabin.  Onco 
in  possession  of  the  deck,  we  designed  that  all,  excepting  such 
of  the  crew  as  we  could  control,  should  be  sent  into  the  hold, 
and  there  guarded,  while  we  shaped  our  course  for  New  York. 
No  violence  was  intended,  beyond  what  was  absolutely  necessary 
to  the  success  of  our  enterprise.  We  had  seamen  enough  among 
our  number  to  work  and  navigate  the  vessel ;  but,  as  tne  ship'tj 
company,  generally,  were  kind  to  us,  we  were  willing  to  employ 
such  of  them  as  we  could  persuade  to  lend  us  a  hand.  The 
morning  was  considered  the  most  favorable  time,  as  then  tho 
forenoon  watch  would  be  below,  while  the  soldiers  and  marines 
would  be  busy  in  cleaning  themselves  and  clearing  up  their 
messes.  The  greatest  opposition  was  expected  from  the  officers, 
who,  if  we  were  not  quick  in  securing  the  cabin,  would  sally  out 
with  their  side-arms  and  pistols  from  the  poop,  and  open  a  com- 
munication with  the  main  hatchway ;  hence  the  design  of  three- 
fourths  of  our  number  being  detached  to  secure  these  important 
points,  and  the  muskets  in  front  of  the  poop.  Our  main  object 
in  obtaining  possession  of  the  fire-arms,  was,  to  prevent  the  crew 
or  soldiers  from  using  them,  for  we  had  no  prospect  of  reaching 
the  magazine  to  obtain  powder.  The  boarding-pikes,  and  what- 
ever we  could  pick  up  about  the  decks,  were  deemed  of  far  more 
importance,  in  a  hand-to-hand  encounter,  than  fire-arms. 


..^.■^ 


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IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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US 


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Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

(716)  873-4503 


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% 


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92 


CAPTIVITY    AND    ADVENTURES    OF 


;  These  details  were  skilfully  arranged ;  and  each  man  of  the 
morning  party  on  deck,  to  whom  had  been  intrusted  the  duty 
of  commencing  operations,  knew  what  was  expected  of  him. 
Here,  then,  was  a  chance  for  liberty ;  indeed,  the  precious  boon 
seemed  almost  within  t^ur  grasp.  Before  another  sun  had  set, 
not  a  man,  acquainted  With  our  plot,  doubted  that  we  should  be 
free.  No  fears  about  our  success  crossed  my  mind ;  nor  did  a 
thought  of  personal  danger  shade  the  path  before  us.  Still,  I 
was  not  free  from  anxiety.  Every  hour  and  half-hour  that  was 
struck,  seemed  to  sound  nearer  and  nearer,  as  the  time  ap- 
proached. The  relieving  of  the  sentinels,  the  calling  of  the 
watch,  and  every  movement  about  the  decks,  attracted  my  atten- 
tion. Even  the  ticking  of  my  watch,  and  the  breathing  of  my 
comrades,  during  the  silent  hours  of  that  sleepless  night,  were 
sounds  not  unheeded. 

The  breakfast  hour  arrived,  and  in  the  bustle  incident  to  the 
assembling  of  the  several  messes  around  their  respective  kids, 
our  sea-faring  comrades,  who  were  the  soul  of  the  approaching 
enterprise,  by  silent  signs  encouraged  us  to  hope,  that,  if  true  to 
ourselves;  our  captivity  was  near  its  close.  "  Firm  and  true," 
could  have  been  read  in  the  face  of  every  man  appealed  to. 
Never  was  an  insipid  meal  eaten  by  men  filled  with  higher  hopes 
than  those  which  lighted  up  the  countenances  of  the  party  who 
were  expected,  in  a  few  minutes,  to  strike  the  first  blow  for  our 
liberty.  Dissimulate  as  they  would,  there  was  still  perceptible, 
in  all  their  acts,  a  restlessness  which  betrayed  their  feelings. 
Perhaps  my  own  anxiety,  which  was  now  bordering  on  enthu- 
siasm, might  have  led  me  to  judge  others  by  myself.  Be  this  as 
it  may,  one  fact,  at  least,  seemed  certain,  namely,  that  our  leaders 
were  fully  determined  to  carry  out  their  designs,  or  perish  in  the 
attempt.  Breakfast  was  at  last  despatched,  the  mess  utensils 
cleared  away,  the  deck  cleaned,  and  every  thing  in  order,  ac- 
cording to  the  rules  of  the  ship.  We  sauntered  about,  endeavor- 
ing to  appear  as  unconcerned  as  usual,  and  speaking,  occasion- 
ally, to  those  who  were  not  intrusted  with  the  scheme  of  our  in- 
tended movements.  As  our  rising  was  an  affair  of  life  and  death, 
none  but  men  of  known  integrity  were  trusted.  Eighty  good  and 
true  men  were  deemed  sufficient  to  take  possession  of  the  ship, 
as  our  mode  of  attack  was  arranged ;  but  we  supposed,  at  the 
same  time,  that  those  whom  we  did  not  trust  with  the  secret  in 
advance,  would  not  be  idle  spectators  when  the  fray  had  been 
commenced.  When  their  own  liberty  is  at  stake,  it  requires  but 
little  effort  to  rouse  brave  men  to  action. 


1  of  the 
he  duty 
of  him. 
us  boon 
had  set, 
ould  be 
r  did  a 
Still,  I 
hat  was 
ime  ap- 
:  of  the 
y  atten- 
j  of  my 
It,  were 

t  to  the 
^e  kids, 
oaching 
*  true  to 
i  true," 
aled  to. 
it  hopes 
irty  who 
for  our 
septible, 
feelings. 
I  enthu- 
I  this  as 
'  leaders 
h  in  the 
utensils 
der,  ac- 
ideavor- 
ccasion- 
our  in- 
1  death, 
oodand 
he  ship, 
I,  at  the 
ecret  in 
id  been 
ires  but 


CAPTAIN    DANIBi.    O.    HEUSTfS.  9$ 

*'  Eight  bells  (eight  o'clock)  were  struck,  and  now  the  hour  had 
come.  Another  minute,  and  we  should  be  mustered  on  deck ; 
in  fact,  we  could  hear  the  sergeant's  tread  along  the  between- 
decks,  walking  forward  to  open  our  prison  door.  It  was  the  ser- 
geant; I  could  see  him  through  the  gratings;  and  now,  high 
heaven  assist  us,  we  crave  but  liberty  !  A  few  moments  will  de- 
cide our  fate !  '  /''*'*^  irjuH^tini-.  '^^iw 

,.  He  descended, — my  heart  sinks  while  I  record  it, — not  to 
open  our  door,  but  to  double  the  sentinels,  and  to  oversee  the 
securing  of  the  hatchway !  Not  one  word  did  he  speak  to  us,  or 
we  to  him.  He  left  us  to  our  own  reflections.  Hours  and  days 
passed  away,  and  not  a  soul  was  permitted  to  go  on  deck ;  and 
even  when  the  requirements  of  nature  rendered  it  necessary  that 
we  should  go  to  the  water-closets,  which  were  in  the  between- 
decks,  we  were  strictly  guarded  by  marines.  It  was  evident  that 
our  scheme  had  been  discovered  by  the  treachery  of  some  of  our 
comrades.  This,  to  a  great  extent,  destroyed  our  confidence  in 
each  other,  and  very  few  words  were  exchanged  upon  the  subject. 
Every  night.  Captain  Wood,  attended  by  the  oflicer  of  the  deck 
and  the  surgeon,  visited  our  prison,  after  we  were  in  bed,  to  sat- 
isfy himself  that  all  was  right  below.  Nor  was  a  single  individ- 
ual, on  any  pretence,  after  a  certain  hour,  permitted  to  leave  his 
bed.     This  order  was  rigorously  enforced  throughout  the  voyage. 

Every  day  our  situation  was  becoming  more  wretched.  At 
last,  by  way  of  opening  a  communication  with  the  captain,  we 
ventured  to  question  the  sentinels  about  the  cause  of  our  being 
excluded  from  the  deck.  They  informed  us  that  two  of  the  civil 
prisoners  had  overheard  some  conversation  between  our  leaders, 
which  let  them  into  the  secret  of  our  plot ;  and,  doubtless 'in  the 
hope  of  receiving  a  free  pardon  as  the  reward  of  their  treachery, 
they  communicated  the  information,  thus  acquired,  to  the  officers 
of  the  ship,  which  was  the  cause  of  our  being  confined  below. 
The  names  of  our  betrayers  were  William  Hiland  and  Edwin 
Merritt ;  one  of  them  had  been  convicted  of  the  crime  of  steal- 
ing, and  the  other  of  murder.  I  left  them  at  Van  Dieman's 
Land,  in  irons,  and  there  they  deserve  to  remain,  as  long  as  they 
live.       J      ..  i',^  , 

After  consultation,  it  was  agreed  that  a  letter  should  be  ad- 
dressed to  the  captain  of  the  ship,  in  which  the  good  conduct  of 
the  men  should  be  solemnly  pledged,  if  they  could  again  be  al- 
lowed to  go  on  deck.  This  letter  was  signed  by  James  M. 
Atchison,  Orin  W.  Smith,  John  Thomas,  and  Daniel  D.  Heustis. 
Captain  Wood,  who  was  really  a  kind  man,  complied  with  our 


CAPTIVITY    AND    ADVENTURES    OF 


request  so  far  as  to  allow  twelve  men  on  deck  at  a  time,  instead 
of  twenty-four,  but  he  took  care  that  they  should  be  well  sur- 
rounded by  Hrmed  sentinels. 

On  thd  18th  of  October,  after  we  had  been  twenty  days  at  sea, 
and  while  we  were  on  the  Banks  of  Newfoundland,  Asa  Priest, 
one  of  my  messmates,  died.  His  complaint  was  a  broken  heart. 
The  thought  of  being  separated  from  his  wife  and  children,  and 
compelled  to  drag  out  a  miserable  existence  among  convicts,  in 
a  land  far  away  from  hooae  and  its  endearments,  was  too  much 
for  him.  He  made  no  complaints,  but  the  slow  progress  of  the 
canker  which  was  eating  at  his  soul  was  plainly  visible.  Grad- 
ually be  pined  away  and  died.  He  was  forty-five  years  of  age, 
and  belonged  to  Auburn,  New  York,  where  he  left  a  family. 

The  body  was  sewed  up  in  a  hammock  and  carried  on  deck. 
All  his  messmates,  and  the  captains  of  the  other  messes,  were 
permitted  to  witness  the  funeral  rites.  The  body,  with  two  shots 
slung  to  the  lower  end  of  the  hammock,  was  laid  on  a  grating 
resting  on  the  lee  gangway,  and  was  covered  with  an  English 
union  jack.  The  decks  were  cleared  up,  and  all  hands,  except 
those  on  immediate  duty,  were  summoned,  by  the  tolling  of  the 
ship's  bell,  to  attend  the  burial  of  the  dead.  The  captain  and 
officers,  in  uniform,  stood  on  the  break  of  the  quarter-deck,  and 
the  rest  of  the  people  were  ranged  along  the  gangways.  The 
burial  service  of  the  Church  of  England  was  read  in  a  clear  and 
impressive  manner,  and,  as  it  drew  toward  the  close,  the  main* 
topsail  was  hove  aback,  the  ensign  hoisted  half-mast,  and  the 
words,  "  we  therefore  commit  his  body  to  the  deep,"  were  ut- 
tered, when  the  grating  was  raised,  and  all  that  remained  of  our 
lamented  comrade  was  launched  into  the  ocean.  A  moment's 
pause  ensued,  as  if  to  afford  us  the  melancholy  chance  of  hearing 
the  last  ripples  that  closed  over  the  departed,  before  orders  were 
given  to  fill  the  maintq)8ail,  and  pipe  the  watch  down.  For  days 
afterwards  this  sad  event  occupied  our  minds,  and  the  many 
excellent  traits  in  the  character  of  our  deceased  friend  passed 
in  review  before  us,  and  formed  the  chief  topic  of  conversation. 
Our  thoughts  were  also  turned  to  his  bereaved  family ;  we  pic- 
tured to  ourselves  the  heart-rending  scene,  when  the  sorrowful 
Btory  should  be  communicated  to  the  wife  and  children  he  was  no 
more  to  visit  on  earth,  and  many  silent  prayers  arose,  that  Heaven 
would  protect  and  sustain  the  widow  and  the  orphans,  in  the  time 
of  trouble. 

After  knocking  about  for  several  weeks,  on  different  tacks, 
we  at  last  caught  the  northeast  trade  winds.    Studding-sails  on 


CAPTAIN    DAMEIi    D.    1IEUST18. 


05 


le,  instead 
well  sur- 

&ys  at  sea, 
Lsa  Priest, 
ken  heart, 
dren,  and 
»nvicts,  in 
too  much 
ess  of  the 
le.  Grad- 
rs  of  aee, 
a  family. 
i  on  deck, 
isses,  were 
I  two  shots 
t  a  grating 
n  English 
ids,  except 
ing  of  the 
aptain  and 
■deck,  and 
Hys.  The 
clear  and 
the  main- 

and  the 

were  ut- 

led  of  our 

moment's 

of  hearing 

ders  were 

For  days 
the  many 
tid  passed 
iTersation. 

;  we  pic- 
sorrowful 
he  was  no 
9X  Heaven 
a  the  time 

mt  tacks, 
ig-sails  on 


both  sides,  fore  and  aft,  watersails,  ringtails,  and  skysails,  were 
spread  to  the  breeze,  and  beautifully  did  the  noble  ship  skim 
along  the  deep.  In  watching  her  motions,  during  my  "  brief 
hour  "  on  deck,  I  sometimes  aJmost  forgot  that  I  was  a  prisoner, 
so  delightful  was  it  to  contemplate  her  onward  course,  under  a 
cloud  of  canvas.  The  ocean  was  alive  with  fish ;  whales,  por- 
poises, black-fish,  dolphins,  sharks,  and  hosts  of  others,  were  seen 
sporting  around  us,  far  as  the  eye  could  reach.  At  last,  we  run 
the  trades  down,  or,  in  other  words,  the  northeast  wind  died 
away  and  left  us  becalmed,  two  or  three  degrees  north  of  the 
equator.  Our  situation  below  now  became  truly  terrible.  The 
heat  had  warmed  into  life  myriads  of  vermin,  that  no  cleanliness 
on  our  part  could  prevent  from  preying  upon  us.  Cockroaches, 
ants,  and  flies,  mingled  even  with  our  scanty  fare ;  and,  as  if  our 
bread  was  not  bad  enough  before,  maggots  and  other  animalcules 
made  it  their  home.  At  night,  the  heat  was  extremely  sufibcar 
ting ;  yet  not  a  man  was  permitted  to  leave  his  berth,  although 
many  of  us  prayed  for  permission  to  lie  on  the  decks. 

Two  or  three  days  wore  away,  without  our  making  the  slight- 
est progress  on  the  voyage ;  the  ship  lay  wallowing  m  the  long 
undulating  swell,  entirely  unmanageable.  At  times,  a  cat^s  paw 
would  darken  the  edge  of  the  horizon,  but  would  invariably  melt 
away  before  it  freshened  into  a  breeze.  On  the  night  of  the 
fourth  day,  we  had  lightning,  thunder,  and  rain,  but  no  wind. 
And  such  rain  and  thunder !  The  sailors  swore,  the  next  day, 
that  they  had  to  swim  about  the  decks  in  rainwater,  and  that  the 
thunder  might  have  shaken  out  the  teeth  of  a  handsaw.  Squalls 
and  rain  followed,  until  we  crossed  the  equator.  Many  times  the 
ship  was  almost  surrounded  with  waterspouts.  I  saw  four  of 
these,  so  close  together  that  they  appeared  to  form  three  arches 
and  pillars,  supporting  a  dark  cloud,  while  the  water  boiled  and 
foamed  around  their  bases.  When  about  crossing  the  equatCMr, 
the  old  salts  were  busy  preparing  tools  for  shaving  the  greeup 
horns ;  but  Captain  Wood  would  not  permit  this  time-honored 
practice  to  be  enforced  on  board  his  ship ;  hence  Neptune  re- 
ceived no  hpnors  from  the  Buifalo. 

At  la^t,  we  were  favored  with  the  southeast  trade  winds,  and 
soon  cleared  the  sultry  weather  of  the  tropics.  Nothing  worthy 
of  notice  occurred,  until  we  cast  anchor  at  Rio  Janeiro,  in  the 
latter  part  of  November.  The  harbor  of  Rio  Janeiro  is  said  to 
be  th^  most  beautiful  in  the  world.  In  it  might  ride  securely  the 
navies  of  all  nations.  Nor  is  the  scenery  around  it  surpassed  in 
beiiuty,  and  sublimity  by  any  that  I  ever  saw.     More  tlu^.  a 


V  t._ 


m 


CAPTIVITY    AND     ADVENTURES    OP 


hundred  inlands,  of  various  shapes  and  sizes,  adorn  the  bosom  of 
the  capacious  i>ay,  and  form  a  natural  breakwater,  that  leaves 
the  inner  harbor  smooth  as  a  lake,  however  ansry  the  ocean  may 
foam  and  swell  without.  Hills  piled  upon  hills,  rising  in  pic- 
turesque ffradation  fVom  the  beach  till  they  seem  to  rest  against 
the  sky,  form  the  frame-work  of  this  finest  of  nature's  paintings. 
The  city  itself,  its  fortiftcations,  the  spires  of  its  numerous 
churches,  and  the  whitened  houses,  as  seen  from  the  ship,  looked 
very  well  in  the  foreground,  relieved  with  many  beautiful  villas, 
that  were  nestled  among  the  hills  and  along  the  margin  of  the 
bay.  Of  course,  a  prisoner  on  board  of  a  ship  cannot  be  expected 
to  give  a  minute  description  of  the  city.  I  have  only  attempted 
to  sketch  things  as  they  appeared  to  me  from  the  place  where 
they  were  seen. 

nhile  we  remained  in  port,  the  emperor's  birthday  was  cele- 
brated with  uncommon  splendor.  All  the  vessels  in  the  har- 
bor—  and  among  them  almost  everv  Christian  maritime  nation 
was  represented^ were  ornamented  with  flags  and  streamers. 
The  foreign  ships  of  war  wore  the  Brazilian  flag  at  the  fore,  and 
were  also  clothed  with  colors  from  the  trucks  to  the  rails.  Boats 
innumerable^  filled  with  people  from  the  shore,  singing  and 
waving  flags,  were  continually  rowing  and  sailing  about  the  bay. 
AshorCf  the  batteries  belched  forth  their  thunder,  which  was  an- 
swered by  ihe  ships  of  war,  who  manned  their  yards  at  the  same 
time.  All  Rio  Janeiro  was  boilins  over  with  joy,  excepting  us 
poor  prisoners,  whose  misery  was  mcreased  by  the  contrast. 

When  the  sea-breeze  set  m,  one  of  the  English  ships  of  war 
(I  believe  it  was  the  Stag  frigate)  got  underway,  and  attempted 
to  work  out  of  the  harbor ;  but,  after  making  half  a  dozen  tacks, 
the  wind  became  so  baflling  that  she  mis-stayed  twice  or  thrice, 
and  actually  fell  to  leeward  of  the  point  from  which  she  started. 
Of  course  she  came  to  an  anchor.  Another  English  vessel  (I 
think  she  was  called  the  Bullion,  but  am  not  certain)  made  a 
like  attempt,  and  also  failed.  Ere  the  latter  had  furled  her  sails, 
an  American  brig  of  war  was  seen  to  leeward  of  the  frigates, 
stretching  across  tne  bay,  her  long  pennant  streaming  out  from 
the  main,  and  the  stripes  and  stars  waving  proudly  from  the  peak. 
Most  beautifully  did  stie  thread  her  way  among  the  fleet  of  mer- 
chant vessels,  and,  when  in  stays,  came  round  like  a  pilot-boat, 
darting  to  windward  without  impeding  her  headway.  Thus  she 
worked  dead  to  windward,  in  the  teeth  of  a  strong  sea-breeze, 
until  she  had  passed  out  to  sea.  Then  her  yards  were  squared, 
and  she  came  in  before  the  wind,  with  studding-sails  on  both 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.   HEU8TI8. 


B  bosom  of 
that  leaves 
ocean  may 
ling  in  pic- 
rest  against 
B  paintings, 
numerous 
hip,  looked 
itiful  villas, 
rgin  of  the 
ye  expected 
'  attempted 
lace  where 

'  was  cele- 
n  the  har- 
ime  nation 
streamers, 
e  fore,  and 
lils.  Boats 
nging  and 
ut  the  bay. 
ch  was  an- 
t  the  same 
cepting  us 
itrast. 
ips  of  war 
attempted 
»zen  tacks, 
5  or  thrice, 
he  started, 
i  vessel  (I 
i)  made  a 
1  her  sails, 
le  frigates, 
I  out  from 
I  the  peak. 
St  of  mer- 
pilot-boat, 
Thus  she 
tea-breeze, 
e  squared, 
Is  on  both 


sides,  skimming  along  like  a  sea-gull,  until  she  reached  within  a 
cable's  length  of  her  anchorage,  when,  as  if  by  magic,  at  the  or- 
der, "  shorten  sail,"  even  before  the  echo  of  the  words  had  died 
away,  every  stitch  of  canvas  disappeared,  and  once  more,  head  to 
wind,  she  was  riding  at  her  anchors.  The  American  merchant- 
men in  port  manned  their  rigging,  and  gave  the  brig  three  cheers. 
Our  captain,  who  was  himself  every  inch  a  sailor,  was  heard  to 
remark  that  he  had  never  witnessed  an  exploit  of  that  kind  which 
displayed  better  seamanship. 

We  were  visited  by  the  captains  of  the  ]^nglish  vessels  of  war 
in  port,  who  seemed  to  regard  us  rather  as  unlucky  fellows  than 
criminals.  Here  we  had  a  couple  of  dinners  of  fresh  beef  and 
soup,  and  such  as  had  the  means  were  permitted  to  buy  various 
kinds  of  fruit,  from  the  boats  which  came  alongside. 

After  remaining  in  port  five  days,  and  replenishing  our  water 
and  provisions,  we  got  underway  with  the  land  breeze,  and  stood 
to  sea.  The  wind  was  unfavorable  for  several  days,  and  even  at 
the  end  of  a  week  we  could  still  see  the  land  under  our  lee.  The 
ship  at  last  was  hove  about,  and  stretched  into  the  broad  Atlantic, 
until  all  traces  of  the  land  had  vanished  beyond  the  horizon. 
Day  after  day,  we  saw  ships  under  a  press  of  canvas  standing 
before  the  wind  to  the  northward,  and  a  few,  like  ourselves,  close 
hauled,  crossing  the  trades ;  for,  after  we  had  obtained  sufficient 
offing,  the  ship  was  once  more  headed  to  the  south, 

One  of  the  prisoners  got  into  a  dispute  with  one  of  the  senti- 
nels, in  the  course  of  which  language  was  used  which  the  petty 
officer  regarded  as  insulting,  and  he  threatened  to  prefer  a  charge 
of  insolence  against  the  poor  prisoner,  and  have  him  punished. 
The  threatened  individual  went  immediately  to  the  sergeant  of 
the  guard,  alleging  that  the  sentinel  was  in  the  habit  of  selling 
rum  to  the  prisoners.  This  charge  being  well  substantiated,  the 
soldier's  complaint  received  no  attention,  but  his  own  misconduct 
procured  him  three  dozen  lashes  on  the  bare  back,  in  man-o'-war 
style.  This,  I  believe,  was  the  only  instance  of  punishment 
which  occurred  during  the  voyage.  From  what  little  I  saw  of 
the  sailors,  I  judged  them  to  be  a  fine  set  of  jovial  fellows,  active 
in  the  performance  of  their  duty,  and  respectful  to  the  officers. 
In  the  evenings,  in  fine  weather,  they  had  singing  and  story- 
telling, but  our  confined  situation  excluded  us  from  making  any 
observations  upon  the  merits  of  their  amusements. 

As  we  approached  the  latitude  of  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  the 
weather  became  so  boisterous  and  squally,  that  for  several  days 
we  were  not  permitted  to  go  on  deck,  as  the  sea  frequently  rolled 
5 


09 


ADVENTURES    OV    CAPTAhN     IlKtSTIS. 


in  Of er  the  gangways^  filling  the  place  allotted  to  ub  for  breathing 
a  little  fresh  air.  Indeed,  one  night,  the  ship,  while  scudding 
before  a  gale,  was  suddenly  taken  aback,  and  fears  were  enter- 
tained that  she  would  go  down,  stern  foremost,  before  she  could 
be  boxed  off.  At  last  we  were  favored  with  a  strong  westerly 
gale,  and  on  the  first  day  of  January,  1840,  we  doubled  the  Cape 
of  Good  Hope.  As  we  looked  back  to  the  many  happy  frolics 
we  had  enjoyed  on  New  Year's  Day,  and  contrasted  the  joyous 
sunshine  of  youth  with  the  cloud  of  wretchedness  which  then 
overshadowed  us,  a -feeling  of  uncommon  sadness  came  over  the 
heart.  We  thought  of  the  many  happy  firesides,  in  our  native 
land,  ;i|M>und  which  little  groups  of  merry  souls  would  that  day 
cluster, tand  is  it  strange  that  we  sighed  for  "  home,  sweet  home"? 
During  the  year  that  had  just  closed,  our  home  had  been  a  dismal 
prison,  and  the  future  we  hardly  dared  to  contemplate.         / 

In  this  latitude,  the  sea  was  long  and  regular,  but  so  high  were 
the  waves,  that,  as  we  descended  between  them,  they  seemed  to 
tower  over  our  stern,  like  tottering  mountains,  about  to  roll  on 
board  and  crush  us  in  their  rtiins.  And  again,  when  perched 
upon  the  giddy  summits,  the  noble  ship  would  tremble,  and  ap- 
pear to  pause  for  a  few  seconds,  and  then  descend  again  into  the 
boihng  valley,  with  such  tremendous  velocity  as  to  becalm  the 
sails,  and  make  the  inexperienced  tremble  for  fear  that  she  would 
never  rise  again ;  but,  buoyant  as  a  bird,  in  the  long  lull  between 
the  waves  she  would  recover  herself,  and  again  impelled  onward, 
ascend  the  giddy  height  that  foamed  before  her.  Thus,  for  sev- 
eral days,  she  flew  before  the  gale,  under  a  close-reefed  dnaintop* 
sail  and  a  reefed  foresail.  The  sailors  caught  several  albatrosses 
and  sea-gulls,  many  of  which  continued  hovering  about  in  the 
wake  of  the  ship  while  the  gale  continued. 

We  passed  between  St.  Paul's  and  Amsterdam  islands,  but  did 
not  heave  to,  as  ships  generally  do,  to  fish.  During  the  rest  of 
the  voyage  nothing  worthy  of  recording  occurred.  On  the  12th 
day  of  February  we  made  St.  Patrick's  Head,  a  high  sugar-loaf 
mountain,  on  Van  Dieman's  Land.  The  wind  was  unfavorable, 
but  we  reached  the  mouth  of  the  River  Derwent  on  the  14th. 
Here  we  took  on  board  a  pilot,  and  proceeded  up  the  river. 
Just  before  sundown  we  cast  anchor  in  the  harbor  of  Hpbart 
Town,  having  been  r40  days  on  the  passage  from  Quebec  to 
Van  Dieman's  Land. 


imQo 


■U&VIK 


■Jrt     ti'fVfTir-^'tn.i  ^W/'K    ifViftlf.  ' 


«^<«' 


mt 


for  breathing 
lile  scudding 
J  were  enter- 
ire  she  could 
rong  westerly 
>led  the  Cape 
happy  frolics 
id  the  joyous 
i  which  then 
ame  over  the 
in  our  native 
)uld  that  day 
weethome"? 
)een  a  dismal 
ate. 

so  high  were 
ey  seemed  to 
>ut  to  roll  on 
^hen  perched 
nble,  and  ap- 
igain  into  the 
3  becalm  the 
hat  she  would 
r  lull  between 
elled  onward, 
rhus,  for  sev- 
efed.maintop- 
'al  albatrosses 
about  in  the 

lands,  but  did 
ig  the  rest  of 
On  the  12th 
{h  sugar-loaf 
)  unfavorable, 
on  the  14th. 
lip  the  river, 
or  of  Hpbart 
m  Quebec  to 


mtW  -vh 


CHAPTER  IX. 

The  DisembarkcUion  —  A  Speech  from  the  Governor —^  Change 
of  Clothes — Work  on  the  Road — The  Rations  —  Death  and 
Burial  of  McLeod — Fruitless  Endeavors  to  find  his  Grave  — 
Lines  by  L.  W.  Mtller  —  Deaths  of  McNulty,  Van  Camp, 
Curtis f  Nottage,  and  Williams  —  An  Attempt  to  escape,  by 
Reynolds,  Paddock,  Cooley,  and  Murray — Their  Capture  and 
Sentence  to  Port  Arthur  —  Interesting  Incident  —  Sufferings 
of  the  Prisoners, 

The  termination  of  the  voyage  gave  rise  to  mingled  feelings 
of  joy  and  pain  in  our  bosoms.  We  longed  to  escape  from  the 
floating  prison  in  which  we  had  suffered  such  horrid  deprivations, 
such  intolerable  sea-sickness,  such  annoyance  from  vermin,  such 
suffocating  heat,  and  such  prolonged  nauseous,  feelings  as  inev- 
itably resulted  from  our  long  confinement  in  a  place  so  poorly 
ventilated.  On  the  other  hand,  we  knew  not  what  treatment  was 
in  store  for  us  after  leaving  the  ship.  Whether  we  should  re- 
ceive such  indulgence  as  is  usually  allowed  to  state  prisoners,  or 
be  doomed  to  suffer  the  same  punishment  that  is  awarded  to  the 
vilest  of  criminals,  was  a  problem  yet  remaining  to  be  solved. 
Our  past  treatment  did  not  afford  us  much  ground  for  hope ;  and 
we  knew  that  the  page  of  British  history  was  blotted  all  over 
with  dark  spots  of  cruelty ;  that  Englanu  had  always  tortured 
those  who  had  dared  to  oppose  the  extension  and  perpetuation 
of  her  rule  in  the  four  quarters  of  the  globe.  In  view  of  these 
things,  it  was  doubtful  whether  our  situation  would  be  much 
ameliorated  on  shore. 

On  the  morning  of  the  15th,  the  health  officers  came  on  board 
the  Buffalo,  for  the  purpose  of  inspecting  the  ship  and  inquiring 
about  our  health.  They  said  it  was  a  wonder  we  were  not  half 
dead,  after  being  confined  so  long  in  such  close  quarters,  and 
gave  orders  to  have  us  sent  on  shore  the  next  morning.  Mr. 
Gunn,  the  principal  superintendent  of  convicts,  also  paid  us  a 
visit,  accompanied  by  his  clerks,  and  took  our  descriptions,  very 
minutely,  and  asked  us  a  great  many  questions,  like  the  follow- 
ing: "What  is  your  name?  What  is  your  trade?  What  is 
your  age  ?    What  is  your  religion  ?    What  is  your  father's  name  ? 


100 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVKNTURE8    OT 


Your  mother's  7  Have  you  any  brothers  and  sisters?  What  are 
their  names?  Are  you  married  ?  What  is  your  sentence?  Can 
you  read  and  write?"  The  answers  to  these  and  other  questions 
*were  all  recorded  by  the  clerks  in  a  larse  book. 

On  the  foUowinff  morning,  the  16th,  before  sunrise,  Mr.  Ounn 
sent  a  number  ofpolice  constables,  with  boats,  to  superintend 
the  landinff  of  the  prisoners.  We  were  turhed  into  a  large  yard, 
which  enclosed  the  "  Tench,"  or  prisoners'  barracks.  At  one 
end  of  the  yard  was  a  large  church,  the  basement  story  of  which 
was  converted  into  cells ;  on  one  side  were  offices  for  the  super- 
intendent and  clerks,  and  a  large  hospital ;  on  the  other  side  was 
the  superintendent's  dwelling-house ;  and  at  the  other  end  a  block 
of  buildings,  containing  a  store-house,  cook  and  bake-house, 
mess-room,  treadmill,  and  barracks  capable  of  holding  fifteen 
hundred  men.  We  were  furnished  with  a  breakfast  of  coarse 
bread  and  skilly,  which  convinced  us  that  no  improvement  in 
the  food  allotted  us  could  be  expected  there. 

At  eleven  o'clock.  Sir  John  Franklin,  Governor  of  Van  Die- 
man^s  Land,  and  his  attendants,  paid  us  a  visit,  in  company  with 
Mr.  Gunn,  and  Captain  Wood,  of  the  Buffalo.  We  were  formed 
into,  a  line,  two  deep,  by  a  Yorkshire  convict,  who  was  to  be  our 
overseer,  and,  as  the  Governor  approached,  we  were  ordered  to 
take  off  our  hats.  It  was  the  first  time  I  had  ever  uncovered  my 
head  to  a  servant  of  royalty,  and  if  there  had  been  any  chance 
of  successfully  resisting  the  order,  my  Yankee  blood  would  have 
prompted  me  to  do  it.  But,  situated  as  we  were,  unconditional 
submission,  however  revolting  to  our  feelings,  was  the  best  policy. 
The  Governor  was  a  man  of  about  the  ordinary  height,  and  of 
sufficient  corpulency  to  indicate  that  his  own  larder  was  well 
supplied,  whatever  might  be  the  fare  meted  out  to  the  prisoners. 
A  dark  complexion,  low  forehead,  dull  hazel  eyes,  and  large  and 
prominent  nose,  mouth,  and  chin,  presented  some  of  the  leading 
features  of  his  countenance,  in  which  it  was  impossible  to  dis- 
cern any  indications  of  superior  intellect.  Clad  in  his  official 
garb,  he  strutted  about,  "  as  large  as  life,"  apparently  entertain- 
ing a  most  exalted  opinion  of  himself,  though  in  reality  he  was 
an  imbecile  old  man,  and  was  usually  styled  the  "  old  granny." 
He  made  an  edifying  speech  to  us,  in  which  he  was  pleased  to 
say  that  we  were  very  bad  men,  very  bad,  indeed;  and  intimated 
that  we  all  deserved  to  be  hung,  and  ought  to  be  eternally  grate- 
ful that  such  had  not  been  our  fate.  He  said  we  had  been  sent 
there  for  **  one  of  the  most  aggravating  crimes,"  putting  much 
emphasis  on  the  word  "  aggravating,"  and,  at  the  same  time,  as 


i.'' 


^1 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.   IIEUSTI8. 


101 


s7  What  are 
ntence  7  Can 
ther  questions 

se,  Mr.  Gunn 
)  superintend 
a  large  yard, 
sks.  At  one 
tory  of  which 
for  the  super- 
ther  side  was 
T  end  a  block 
bake-house, 
aiding  fifteen 
ist  of  coarse 
>rovement  in 

of  Van  Die- 
ompany  with 
were  formed 
I'as  to  be  our 
3  ordered  to 
ncovered  my 
any  chance 
would  have 
nconditional 
;  best  policy, 
ght,  and  of 
er  was  well 
le  prisoners, 
id  large  and 
'  the  leading 
isible  to  dis- 
his  official 
ly  entertain- 
ality  he  was 
►Id  granny." 
i  pleased  to 
d  intimated 
nally  grate- 
d  been  sent 
itting  much 
ne  time,  as 


if  unwilling  to  look  us  in  the  face,  rolled  his  eyes  up  to  heaven, 
like  a  dying  calf,  in  the  hands  of  a  butcher,  if  I  may  be  allowed 
to  use  a  comparison  suggested  by  my  former  business.  He  as- 
sured us,  however,  that  "  good  conduct  should  be  rewarded." 
Captain  Wood,  in  answer  to  a  question  as  to  our  conduct  during 
the  voyage,  said  we  had  behaved  remarkably  well.  In  conclu- 
sion, the  Governor  told  us  he  had  received  no  orders  from  gov- 
ernment in  relation  to  us,  and  that  he  should  set  us  to  work  on 
the  road  until  he  could  write  and  obtain  instructions  from  Lord 
John  Russell,  as  to  what  our  treatment  was  to  be,  and  when 
those  instructions  arrived  he  would  inform  us. 

As  he  was  about  leaving,  Mr.  Gunn  observed  that  there  were 
five  civil  prisoners  who  had  been  sent  out  with  us.  The  Gover- 
nor inquired,  for  what  crimes?  The  answer  was  mur^ir,  theft, 
arson,  &.c.  Sir  John  then  turned  to  these  prisoners,  and  gave 
them  a  very  severe  lecture,  telling  them  what  their  doom  would 
be,  but  repeating  his  promise  to  us,  that  "  good  conduct  should 
be  rewarded." 

After  the  Governor  had  left,  one  of  the  civil  prisoners,  who 
had  shot  a  man  for  invading  the  sanctity  of  his  domestic  rela- 
tions, said  he  could  not  see  the  propriety  of  calling  him  a  "  mur- 
derer,'' when  he  hsd  only  shot  one  man,  while  some  of  us  had 
probably  shot  twenty,  and  we  were  honorably  denominated  "  po- 
litical prisoners." 

All  our  clothing,  except  the  linen,  was  taken  from  us  and 
placed  in  the  government  store-house,  where  we  subsequently 
found  a  small  portion  of  it,  eaten  and  torn  to  pieces  by  the  rats, 
and  completely  ruined.  Another  suit  was  furnished  us,  consist- 
ing of  a  pair  of  pantaloons,  a  vest,  and  jacket,  made  of  coarse 
and  unserviceable  woollen  cloth,  of  a  dirty  grey  color.  Such  su- 
per flous  things  as  pockets  and  collars  were  dispensed  with.  This 
was  all  we  could  have  for  six  months,  though  it  would  not  last 
half  that  time.  We  had  a  pair  of  slop-made  shoes  once  in  four 
months,  but  no  stockings.  The  shoes  were  often  worn  out  in 
less  than  two  months,  and  then  we  had  to  go  with  bare  feet,  it 
being  of  no  use  to  "  ask  for  more,"  after  the  manner  of  Oliver 
Twist.  Once  in  six  months  we  had  a  coarse  striped  shirt,  and 
had  to  ga  without  any  while  we  washed  it.  For  the  head  we 
had  a  scull-cap,  of  leather,  which  fitted  quite  close.  The  fit  of 
our  clothes  was  a  point  about  which  very  little  thought  was  ex- 
pended by  those  who  rigged  out  the  new  suits.  They  sat  like 
the  coat  of  Daniel  Lambert  on  Calvin  Edson,  or,  to  use  a  com- 
mon expression,  like  a  shirt  on  a  bean-pole. 


102 


CAPTIVITY    AND    AnVRNTVRKl    OF 


w     I 


For  bedding,  each  man  had  a  ■mall  tick,  (which  we  filled  with 
grass,  not  haying  any  straw,^  and  two  coarse  blankets.  Bed- 
steads were  an  article  of  furniture  altogether  too  extravagant  for 
our  use.  A  tin  plate,  tin  cup,  and  an  iron  spoon,  for  each  man, 
completed  the  outfit.  All  these  articles  had  "  B.  O."  (board  of 
ordnance,)  and  the  broad  arrow,  or  **  devil's  claw,"  as  we  used 
to  call  it,  marked  upon  them,  and  were  numbered. 

We  were  taken  to  the  Sandy  Bay  Station,  two  miles  below  Ho- 
bart  Town,  on  the  River  Derwent,  where  we  were  set  to  work 
on  the  road,  on  the  morning  of  the  17th  of  February,  1840.  We 
were  all  kept  together,  and  not  allowed  to  mix  with  other  prison- 
ers, which  we  had  no  inclination  to  do.  Some  were  made  to 
draw  cart-loads  of  gravel  and  stone.  Twelve  hundred  pounds 
is  a  govMllment  load  for  five  men,  but  the  overseers  more  fre- 
quently put  on  fourteen  c**  fifteen  hundred.  Others  were  com- 
pelled to  wheel  heavy  loads  in  wheel-barrows.  In  this  way  we 
were  kept  at  work  firom  sunrise  till  sundown,  with  an  intermis- 
sion of  one  hour  for  dinner,  being  driven  by  some  of  the  vilest 
convicts,  who  had  been  made  our  overseers.  In  the  long  days, 
w^  had  half  an  hour  for  breakfut,  at  8  o'clock.  One  day  we 
were  driven  a  distance  amountingto  twenty-nine  miles,  drawing 
loaded  carts  one  half  the  way.  The  average  distance  we  were 
made  to  travel,  in  this  manner,  was  about  twenty  miles  each  day. 

Our  food  consisted  of  one  pound  and  five  ounces  of  coarse 
bread,  baked  in  the  most  indiiierent  manner,  three  fourths  of  a 
pound  of  fresh  meat,  half  a  pound  of  potatoes,  and  half  an  ounce 
of  salt,  with  two  ounces  of  flour  for  skilly  in  the  morning,  and 
the  same  at  night.  This  was  the  daily  ration  for  each  man, 
without  variation,  firom  one  end  of  the  year  to  the  other.  The 
meat  was  boiled,  or  half  boiled,  and  the  broth  served  us  for 
drink.  From  a  pint  of  this  broth,  it  was  frequently  no  difficult 
matter  to  scrape  off  a  spoonfiil  of  maggots.  It  may  be  proper  to 
remark,  that  a  peculiar  kind  of  fly  is  found  at  Van  Dieman's 
Land.  It  is  considerably  larger  than  our  common  house-fly,  and, 
instead  of  depositing  an  egg,  or  fly-blow,  on  a  piece  of  meat,  to 
be  hatched,  it  leaves  a  small  but  perfect  maggot.  By  killing  the 
fly  these  small  maggots  can  be  found  in  the  body.  One  day,  our 
meat  was  so  full  of  this  live  stock  that  we  refused  to  touch  it.  It 
was  exhibited  to  the  doctor  of  the  Station,  who  said  it  was  un- 
wholesome, and  we  need  not  eat  it.  Nothing  was  substituted, 
however,  and  we  had  no  meat  for  that  day's  dinner. 

There  were  two  sets  of  weights  at  the  station,  one  to  buy  with, 
and  another  to  weigh  out  the  rations,  the  former  being  much  the 


CAPTAIN    <>AMEL    D.    HBUSTIN. 


loa 


I  were  coin- 


heaviest.  Every  Saturday,  the  salt  fur  the  coming  week  was 
weighed  out,  for  all  the  men  on  the  Station.  I  was  sent  after  it 
for  four  weeks  in  succession,  and,  as  we  had  a  new  superintendent, 
who  did  not  know  the  difference  between  the  weights,  I  succeed- 
ed in  weighing  it  with  the  heavy  one  for  three  weeks.  The 
fourth  time,  the  superintendent  having  put  in  the  light  weight,  I 
changed  it,  which  he  noticed,  and  asked  me  why  I  did  it.  My 
answer  not  being  satisfactory,  he  put  the  two  weights  into  the 
opposite  ends  of  the  scales,  and  discovered  the  reason  of  my 
shifting  them.  He  then  deducted  what  I  had  overdrawn  for  the 
last  three  weeks,  which  left  me  but  a  small  allowance  to  convey 
to  my  companions. 

We  found  at  Van  Dieman's  Land  ten  prisoners,  who  were 
taken  at  Short  Hills,  Canada,  and  had  arrived  some^Mme  be- 
fore us,  by  way  of  England.  Their  names  were  Linu^W.  Mil- 
ler, John  Grant,  James  Gemmel,  John  Vernon,  James  Wag- 
goner, Horace  Cooley,  Norman  Mallory,  Samuel  Chandler,  Ben- 
jamin Waite,  and  Jacob  Beemer.  Alexander  McLeod,  John  J. 
McNulty,  and  Garret  Van  Camp,  belonging  to  the  same  party, 
died  shortly  after  reaching  the  Island,  and  before  our  arrival. 
McLeod  was  a  noble  specimen  of  the  human  race,  and  invariably 
won  the  confidence  of  his  associates,  and  the  sympathy  even  of 
his  opponents.  After  his  death,  the  surgeon  of  the  hospital  said 
to  Mr.  Wait,  "  I  wish  to  heaven  I  could  have  saved  him,  but  he 
came  too  late  for  our  skill.  I  never  saw  as  perfect  a  model  of  a 
man  as  his,  and  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  I  candidly  believe  him  to 
have  fallen  a  victim  to  the  barbarity  of  the  surgeon  of  the  ship, 
who  ought  to  be  placed  in  the  same  situation  that  a  dozen  of  his 
men  are  already  in,  since  landing." 

Mr.  Wait,  in  his  interesting  Letters  from  Van  Dieman's  Land, 
informs  us  that,  five  days  after  McLeod's  death,  a  number  of  pris- 
oners who  had  come  in  the  same  ship  with  him,  from  England, 
were  sent  to  the  hospital  to  bury  the  dead.  They  found  the  body 
on  a  table,  cyt  in  many  pieces,  with  the  entrails  lying  beside  it. 
They  gathered  the  pieces  together  and  put  them  in  a  coflin  of 
rough  boards,  and  behold,  it  was  poor  McLeod,  whom  they  all 
knew  and  respected.  The  scene  was  revolting,  but  there  was  no 
alternative.  They  carried  him  away  and  laid  him  in  a  stranger's 
grave,  among  felons,  with  no  mark  to  distinguish  the  spot  from 
the  thousands  of  mounds  around  him. 

Four  years  afterwards,  Linus  W.  Miller,  having  obtained  per- 
mission to  visit  Hobart  Town,  spent  considerable  time  in  fruits 
less  endeavors  to  discover  the  resting-place  of  his  friend.    The 


104 


CAPTiyiTY    AND    ADVENTURES    OP 


prisoners  had  it  in  contemplation  to  erect  a  grave-stone,  as  a  sim- 
ple tribute  to  the  worth  of  their  departed  companion.  When 
compelled  to  abandon  all  hope  of  finding  the  grave,  Mr.  Miller 
sat  down  and  penned  the  following  lines,  which  were  published 
in  the  Colonial  Times,  printed  at  Hobart  Town.  The  con- 
cluding stanzas  are  exceedingly  appropriate  and  beautiful :  — 

,,  I  sought  the  grave  of  my  friend, 

Amid  the  filumb'ring  dead ;  •'.         -.Si  ■ 

In  the  yard  where  outcast  men  v       ■       < 

.  '     '  Are  doomed  to  lay  their  head ;  ',  .   .,ri 

*  Where  the  wronged  and  injured  lie. 

Neglected  and  forgot,  t 

And  the  raven's  mournful  cry     ,,   . 
Alone  bewails  their  lot : 

Where  the  felon  finds  at  last  )■■,       ,• 

An  end  to  sin  and  crime, 
His  weary  pilgrimage  passed. 

And  sorrow  healed  in  time ;  '  • 

Where  the  free  and  bond  both  sleep. 

In  earth's  cold,  dismal  cell ; 
And  the  jailer,  Death,  doth  keep  ' 

And  tend  his  pris'ners  well. 

I  sought  in  vain  the  place 

Where  they  had  made  his  bed  ; 
The  sexton  had  left  no  trace  • 

Of  the  forgotten  dead. 

Stranger  !   wouldst  thou  wish  to  hear 
,'  Why  I  thus  sought  that  grave. 

To  mingle  a  comrade's  tear  ^  . 

With  ashes  of  the  brave  ?  *  ' 

'T  was  to  bid  him  sweetly  rest,  "  " 

Though  in  a  foreign  land ;  '  ' 

And  plant  a  rose  on  his  breast, 

Culled  by  a  comrade's  hand. 

.0  ■    ■-.  , 

To  erect  an  humble  stone  .  t- 

#•.  In  honor  of  the  brave. 

With  this  inscribed  thereon  : 

^^  This  is  a  Patriot's  grave  "  '  * 

McNulty  died  of  consumption,  and  Van  Camp  from  an  injury 
received  wJtih  drawing  a  cart!  Thus  they  escaped  British 
thraldom  through  the  grave.  They  were  upright  men,  and  much 
esteemed  by  their  companions. 

A  few  weeks  after  our  arrival,  Lysander  Curtis,  whose  health 
was  quite  feeble  during  the  voyage,  and  who  had  been  allowed 
to  pass  a  few  days  in  the  hospital,  was  again  set  to  work,  and 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL    D.    IIEUSTI8. 


105 


compelled  to  wheel  heavy  loads.  He  was  often  under  the  neces- 
sity of  setting  down  his  barrow  to  rest.  The  overseer,  a  convict- 
ed felon,  named  Thomas  Plewit,  would  then  utter  some  horrid 
oath,  and  threaten  to  send  the  poor  man  to  the  cells,  if  he  did  not 
go  on  with  his  work.  In  the  afternoon,  one  day,  he  sat  down 
his  barrow,  completely  exhausted,  and  said  he  could  go  no  fur- 
ther. He  told  the  overseer  he  was  sick,  and  could  not  wheel  his 
load.  "  D — n  your  bloody  eyes,  wheel  it  or  die  by  it ;  I  don't 
care  which !  "  was  the  inhuman  taskmaster's  reply.  Poor  Curtis 
again  attempted  to  wheel  the  barrow,  but  soon  fainted.  A  com- 
rade threw  some  water  in  his  face,  and,  when  he  recovered,  he 
said,  "I  feel  that  my  stay  in  this  world  will  be  short;  I  do  not 
regret  it,  for  it  is  better  to  die  than  to  live  here."  Several  of  the 
prisoners  spoke  to  Hewit,  begging  that  Curtis  might  fa^^ttlowed 
to  go  to  the  Station,  but  received  nothing  but  oaths  in  ri^ly.  He 
lay  on  the  ground  till  night,  when  he  was  carried  in.  During  the 
night  he  was  very  sick,  and  at  one  time  was  thought  to  be  dying. 
In  the  morning,  the  superintendent  ordered  that  he  be  taken  to 
the  hospital  in  a  hand-cart.  When  he  left,  a  tear  stole  down  his 
cheek,  as  he  said  to  his  comrades,  "  Farewell'!  we  shall  not  meet 
again ;  bui  write  for  me  to  my  poor  friends.  O !  this  is  indeed 
very  hard  to  bear  ! "  He  lingered  a  few  days  in  the  hospital,  and 
then  his  earthly  sorrows  terminated  in  the  sleep  of  death.  None 
of  us  were  allowed  to  visit  him ;  he  had  no  sympathizing  friends 
around  his  dying  bed,  to  minister  to  his  wants,  and  offer  consola- 
tion in  the  hour  of  final  dissolution.  We  were  not  even  permitted 
to  see  the  corpse,  or  to  witness  its  interment.  The  next  Sunday, 
we  cut  up  some  black  silk  handkerchiefs  into  strips,  and  tied 
them  round  our  arms,  as  a  token  of  respect  for  our  departed  com- 
rade. As  we  were  marched  up  to  church,  two  by  two,  with  these 
badges  of  mourning  on  our  armi^,  we  encountered  the  vile  sneers 
and  derision  of  the  by-standers,  who  looked  upon  the  death  of  a 
prisoner  as  of  no  more  consequence  than  the  death  of  a  dog ! 

After  we  had  been  there  about  three  months,  William  Not- 
tage,  one  of  the  Windsor  prisoners,  was  blown  up,  by  the  explo- 
sion of  a  charge  of  powder,  which  he  was  drilling  out  of  a  rock. 
He  was  badly  cut  to  pieces,  and  was  taken  to  the  hospital,  where 
he  lived  but  a  few  days,  suffering  great  agony.  He  was  /rom 
Amherst,  Ohio,  where  he  left  a  family,  to  whom  this  afflictive 
event  must  have  been  peculiarly  distressing. 

About  this  time,  several  of  us  were  severely  troubled  with  sore 
eyes.  For  four  or  five  weeks  I  could  hardly  see,  and  the  pain 
was  intense.  Nevertheless,  I  was  kept  at  work  all  the  time.  The 
5* 


106 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES    OP 


M 


ii! 


■\   ' 


doctor  would  lift  up  our  eyelids  and  rub  in  blue  vitriol,  which 
was  enough  to  take  a  man's  life  from  him.  He  gave  me  several 
pills,  intending  to  salivate  rae.  I  threw  his  physic  to  the  dogs, 
and  by  an  application  of  tobacco-water  effected  a  cure.  Another 
man,  one  of  the  Windsor  prisoners,  who  was  tried  under  the 
name  of  James  P.  Williams,  but  whose  real  name  was  Nelson 
Recker,  took  the  doctor's  pills,  was  salivated,  and  afterwards  be- 
came totally  blind.  He  was  then  sent  to  the  invalid  hospital  at 
New  Norfolk,  about  twenty  miles  from  Hobart  Town,  up  the 
River  Derwent,  where  he  died  eight  or  nine  months  afterwards. 
Good  treatment  would  undoubtedly  have  saved  him.  He  former- 
ly resided  in  Onondaga  county,  New  York. 

AbouLthe  20th  of  May,  William  Reynolds,  Jacob  Paddock, 
Horac4|poley,  and  Michael  Murray,  having  had  three  months 
trial  of  slavery,  made  an  attempt  to  escape.  They  left  in  the 
dusk  of  the  evening,  hid  themselves  in  the  woods  for  a  few  days, 
and  then  took  a  boat  and  put  out  to  sea,  in  the  hope  of  falling 
in  with  an  American  whale-ship.  In  going  ashore  on  an  unin- 
habited island  their  boat  was  stove  in  pieces,  and  they  were  com- 
pelled to  remain  there  about  two  weeks,  subsisting  on  shell-iish. 
They  all  came  near  starving  to  death,  and  Murray  was  taken 
sick.  He  was  apparently  at  the  point  of  death,  when  they  con- 
cluded to  give  themselves  up  to  some  constables  who  were  search- 
ing for  them.  They  were  tried  and  sentenced  to  Port  Arthur  for 
two  years.  This  latter  place  is  a  penal  settlement,  where  offend- 
ers against  the  laws  and  regulations  of  the  colony  are  sent  for 
more  severe  punishment,  and  closer  confinement.  The  suffer- 
ings of  those  sent  to  Port  Arthur  are  represented  as  most  appal- 
ing.  It  is  considered  a  very  wicked  thing  for  a  man  to  attempt 
to  escape ;  and  the  Governor,  in  his  speeches  to  prisoners,  on 
their  arrival,  was  careful  to  tell  them  how  extremely  naughty  it 
would  be  for  them  to  endeavor  to  avoid  the  punishment  they  so 
richly  merited,  by  absconding ! 

The  following  is  an  extract  from  a  very  interesting  work  by 
Linus  W.  Miller,  just  published,  entitled  "  Notes  f  an  Exile,  ojn 
Canada,  England,  and  Van  Dieman's  Land.'*  Mr.  Miller  is  a 
talented  young  lawyer,  and  the  author  of  the  verses  inserted  on  a 
prevlbus  page.  I  cheerfully  commend  his  book  to  the  attention 
of  the  readers  of  my  humble  narrative.  The  following  incident 
is  related  by  him  so  much  better  than  I  could  do  it,  that  I  beg 
leave  to  quote  »t  :•  - 

"  The  party  in  general  bore  their  misfortunes  with  manly  for- 
titude.    There  were  several  aged  men  among  us,  who  mostly  set 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.     HEUSTIS. 


107 


the  younger  an  example  worthy  to  be  followed  in  the  school  of, 
adversity.  Elijah  C.  Woodman,  of  London,  Upper  Canada,  and 
Chauncey  Sheldon,  of  Michigan,  were  the  eldest.  I  shall  never 
forget  a  little  circumstance  which  occurred,  connected  with  the 
former.  We  had  worked  hard  all  day,  in  the  cold  rain,  and,  as 
usual,  were  locked  into  our  cheerless  huts  after  the  day's  toil, 
to  sleep  in  our  wet  clothing  until  the  morrow  should  again  call 
us  to  the  performance  of  our  cruel  tasks.  Some  sat  upon  the 
forms,  some  in  their  berths,  while  others  had  covered  themselves 
with  their  thin  blanket  and  rug,  to  court  the  warmth,  sleep,  and 
rest  which  they  so  much  needed.  All  were  silent.  Drooping 
heads  and  sad  countenances  indicated  that  the  thoughts  of  the 
melancholy  party  were  of  bitter  wrongs,  or  perchan^M|£  distant 
home  and  friends.  Occasionally  a  heavy  sigh  migf^HI  heard, 
and  anon  a  slight  groan  from  the  sick,  for  there  ^^K  always 
sick  among  us.  Suddenly,  Mr.  Woodman  sprang  from  his  berth 
to  the  floor,  and  in  a  tone  of  voice  that  might  have  been  heard 
a  mile,  struck  up  '  The  Hunters  of  Kentucky.'  The  effect  was 
instantaneous.  As  if  electrified,  every  man  sprang  to  the  floor ; 
sick,  blind,  and  halt,  joined  in  the  chorus;  some  danced,  others 
shouted,  and  all  shook  off  the  gloomy  horrors  of  Van  Dieman's 
Land." 

Already  five  of  the  political  prisoners  at  Van  Dieman's  Land 
had  been  consigned  to  the  grave,  and  the  sixth,  sick  and  blind, 
was  soon  to  follow  them.  Four  others  had  been  sent  to  Port 
Arthur,  to  endure  sufferings  far  worse  than  death,  as  the  penalty 
for  endeavoring  to  recover  their  freedom !  The  constitutions  of 
others  were  breaking  down,  in  consequence  of  excessive  toil, 
miseraUe  food,  scanty  clothing,  and  inadequate  shelter.  The 
tyranny  and  brutality  of  the  overseers,  and  the  impossibility  of 
obtaining  any  redress  of  our  grievances,  by  appealing  to  the  su- 
perintendent, added  to  our  bodily  sufferings  the  tormenting  re- 
flection that  we  were  slaves  !  Ay,  slaves,  in  hopeless  bondage, 
with  the  very  meanest  of  God's  creatures  set  over  us  to  extort 
the  last  particle  of  strengh,  and  then  to  abuse  us  because  we  had 
no  more !  O !  when  I  look  back  upon  the  horrid  scenes  we 
passed  through,  and  the  wretched  life  we  led,  my  blood  chills  at 
the  very  thought,  and  I  am  astonished  that  we  did  not  all  perish 
in  our  captivity  I  I  am  sure  that  none  but  strong  hearts  and 
iron  constitutions  could  endure  such  an  ordeal,  without  sinking 
under  the  weight  of  accumulated  burdens ! 


^luit 


t 


(i! 


108 


CHAPTER  X. 

Lovely  Banks — Robbery  in  Bagdad  Jail —  Horrid  Sufferings — 
A  Scheme  to  obtain  Liberty — Mtter  and  Stewart  sent  to  Port 
Arthur — Our  Removal  to  Oreen  Ponds — Atchison^  the  Negro 
Driver  —  Dishonest  Superintendents — The  Bridgewater  Sta- 
tion—  Dispersion  of  our  Party — The  Author  ami  twenty-one 
others  sent  to  Brown's  River — Cruel  Floggings — Criminality 
of  eatjafm  Sheep* s  Head — Captain  Jones.         ^^  t- 

SoMEimR  about  the  middle  of  June,  we  were  removed  from 
the  Sandy  Bay  Station  to  a  place  called  Lovely  Banks,  about 
forty  miles  in  the  interior,  on  the  road  leading  to  Launceston.. 
This  removal  from  the  seaboard  was  doubtless  designed  to  pre- 
vent our  escape.  There  were  no  inhabitants  living  within  two 
miles  of  the  Station,  which  was  in  a  beautiful  valley,  surrounded 
by  high  hills.  The  mareh  to  Lovely  Banks  occupied  two  days, 
and  we  carried  our  bedding  and  one  day's  provisions  on  our 
■backs.  We  stopped  over  night  at  Bagdad  Jail,  and  twenty  of  us 
were  locked  up  in  a  room  with  twenty-three  convicts,  who  had 
just  been  tried  and  convicted  of  various  crimes,  and  were  then 
awaiting  the  execution  of  their  several  sentences.  We  piled  our 
bundles  in  a  heap,  and  Daniel  Liscorob  was  charged  with  the 
duty  of  watching  them,  until  he  should  be  relieved.  In  about 
an  hour  I  went  to  him,  and  found  him  sitting  on  one  of  the  bun- 
dles, in  a  quiet  sleep,  and  every  other  bundle  had  been  removed. 
We  found  them  in  different  parts  of  the  room,  cut  open,  and 
rifled  of  all  the  articles  our  "  fellow-boarders  "  had  a  fancy  for. 
By  the  assistance  of  some  one  outside,  these  articles  had  been 
passed  out  of  the  room,  and  we  never  saw  them  again.  The  in- 
veterate thieves  even  went  so  far  as  to  blow  out  the  light,  that 
they  might  have  an  opportunity  to  steal  the  dough  which  we  had 
mixed  for  the  next  day's  batch  of  bread.  When  we  had  obtained 
another  light,  about  half  our  dough  had  disappeared ;  the  rascals 
had  got  it  in  their  hats,  on  the  top  of  their  heads ! 

June,  July,  and  August,  are  the  winter  months  in  Van  Die- 
man's  Land.  The  ground  is  seldom  covered  with  snow  for  more 
than  an  hour  at  a  time ;  yet  there  is  much  disagreeable  weather. 
It  not  unfrequently  rains  or  snows  all  day,  and  the  nights  are 


ill  1 1 


ADVENTURES    OF    CAPTAIN     HEUSTIS. 


100 


feting s — 
nt  to  Port 
the  Negro 
water  StOf 
twenty-one 
HminaUty 


oved  from 
iks,  about 
aunceston. 
led  topre- 
vithin  two 
lurroanded 
two  days, 
IS  on  our 
enty  of  us 
s,  who  had 
were  then 
s  piled  our 
i  with  the 
In  about 
>f  the  bun- 
i  removed, 
open,  and 
fancy  for. 
had  been 
The  in- 
light,  that 
ch  we  had 
d  obtained 
he  rascals 

Van  Difr- 
V  for  more 
weather, 
ights  are 


:j 


exceedingly  cold.  During  the  three  months  we  remained  at 
Lovely  Banks  we  suffered  almost  every  conceivable  hardship. 
Notwithstanding  the  weather  was  wet  and  cold,  our  clothing  was 
worn  to  tatters,  and  many  poor  fellows  were  entirely  destitute  of 
shoes,  and  blood  marked  their  footsteps,  as  they  travelled  over  the 
frozen  ground  !  Hiram  Loop,  for  refusing  to  labor  without  shoes, 
was  shut  up  in  a  loathsome  cell  for  several  days,  and  fed  on  bread 
and  water !  Many  were  sick,  some  of  whom  were  thrust  into 
the  cells  for  not  performing  the  cruel  tasks  required  by  the  over- 
seers. No  matter  how  stormy  the  weather  miffht  be,  we  had  to 
do  our  day's  work.  Finding  it  difficult  to  drive  us  as  hard  as 
they  wished,  our  taskmasters  began  to  threaten  us  with  the  cat- 
o'-nine-tails ;  but  we  assured  them  we  would  all  fight  ^^death 
before  that  ignominious  punishment  should  be  inflicte^Plk  any 
of  our  party,  and  it  was  not  attempted.  We  had  no  fires  to  warm 
ourselves  by,  or  to  dry  our  wet  garments.  Wet  and  cold  we 
went  to  bed,  and  in  the  morning  I  have  repeatedly  found  my 
body  and  limbs  so  benumbed  and  stifi*,  in  consequence  of  hard 
labor  and  exposure,  that  I  could  hardly  raise  myself  up.  And 
yet  I  enjoyed  better  health  than  many  others.  The  horrors  of 
such  a  life,  mortal  pen  is  inadequate  to  describe. 

We  were  constantly  on  the  lookout  for  an  opportunity  to  es- 
cape. About  the  20th  of  August,  we  learned,  by  some  convicts 
who  had  just  come  from  Hobart  Town,  that  several  American 
whale-ships  were  in  port.  It  was  agreed  that  Linus  W.  Miller 
and  Joseph  Stewart  should  make  a  trip  to  town,  and  see  if  some 
arrangement  could  not  be  made  with  the  captains  to  take  us  off.* 
We  had  a  scheme  matured  by  which  we  hoped  to  bid  adieu  to 
Van  Dieman^s  Land.  On  the  evening  of  the  29th,  having  been 
provided  with  a  stock  of  provisions  saved  out  of  our  rations,  they 
commenced  their  journey.  Previous  to  leaving,  they  wrote  a 
note  to  Major  Ainsworth,  the  visiting  magistrate  to  the  Station, 
and  left- it  where  it  would  be  found  the  next  morning.  In  this 
note  they  complained  of  being  *'  treated  far  worse  than  African 
slaves  in  any  part  of  the  world,"  and  said  they  had  been  driven 
to  take  the  bush,  as  the  only  chance  of  prolonging  their  lives. 
The  design  was  to  put  the  authorities  on  the  wrong  track  in  their 
pursuit.  They  travelled  all  night,  and  then  made  their  bed  for 
the  day  under  cover  of  a  thick  cluster  of  the  wattle-tree.  The 
next  night  they  resumed  their  journey,  carefully  avoiding  the 
habitations  of  men,  and  making  their  way  over  hills  and  through 
valleys,  where  their  progress  at  times  was  very  much  obstructed 
by  underbrush  and  high  grass.     The  second  day  they  were  dis- 


tin 


j(! 


I     :   !: 


i       M 


I     •  i'ili 


no 


cAPTivrry   and  .\i)vi:N'ruRKrt  ok 


covered  in  the  wooJh  by  a  district  constable.  Miller,  by  appeal- 
ing to  his  feelings  a»  a  father,  a  brother,  a  son,  finally  touched 
the  constable's  heart,  and  he  let  them  go  unmolested.  On  the 
evening  of  the  2d  of  September  they  arrived  at  Sandy  Bay,  where 
they  had  previously  become  acquainted  with  some  men  who  had 
promised  to  render  assistance  in  such  an  enterprise.  .The  first 
man  to  whom  they  applied  was  terror-stricken  at  seeing  them, 
and,  instead  of  aflfordmg  them  assistance,  went  and  notified  sev- 
eral constables.  All  persons  are  forbidden  by  law  to  harbor  or 
assist  any  prisoner  in  escaping  from  the  Island,  under  a  penalty 
of  five  hundred  pounds,  and  the  fear  of  being  himself  detected  in 
harboring  our  iViends,  led  the  very  man  in  whom  they  trusted  to 
betra^h|m.  Thirty  pieces  of  silver  possess  a  wonderful  charm 
in  somlMwes.  The  prisoners  fled,  with  constables  at  their  heels. 
The  pursuit  was  a  hot  one,  but  our  friends  escaped,  and  took 
refiige  under  a  stone  bridge,  three  miles  below  Sandy  Bay,  where 
they  remained  the  following  day,  during  which  time  more  than 
thirty  constables  crossed  the  bridge  in  search  of  them.  At  night 
they  commenced  a  retreat,  with  the  intention  of  returning  to 
Lovely  Banks.  On  the  11th  of  September,  they  voluntarily  sur- 
rendered to  the  authorities  at  Bagdad,  where  they  were  confined 
in  prison  a  few  days,  and  then  were  taken  to  Green  Ponds  for 
trial  before  Maior  Ainsworth.  The  charge  was,  "  being  illegally 
absent  twelve  days,"  to  which  they  pleaded  guilty,  and  were  im- 
mediately sentenced  to  Port  Arthur  for  two  years. 

Of  their  subsecjuent  suflTerings  and  trials,  Mr.  Miller  gives  a 
detailed  account  in  his  recently  published  work.  During  the 
first  part  of  their  stay  at  Port  Arthur,  almost  every  conceivable 
torture  was  inflicted  upon  them.  After  a  few  weeks,  however, 
the  Rev.  J.  A.  Manton,  chaplain  of  the  Station,  and  a  very  worthy 
man,  became  acquainted  with  Miller,  and  finding  him  an  intelli- 
gent and  upright  young  man,  appointed  him  clerk  of  the  church 
and  school-keeper.  Ttiis  situation  he  held  until  his  sentence  ex- 
pired, when  he  obtained  the  appointment  of  tutor  in  the  fam- 
ily of  General  Lempriere,  the  commissariat  officer  of  the  Station, 
where  he  remained,  in  comparative  comfort  and  happiness,  until 
he  entered  the  law  oflUce  of  Edward  MacDowell,  Esq.,  the  first 
barrister  of  the  Australian  Colonies,  and  formerly  Attorney- 
General  of  Van  Dieman's  Land.  Having  previously  obtained  his 
"  ticket  of  leave,"  —  a  partial  emancipation,  which  allows  the 
prisoner,  under  certain  restrictions,  freedom  to  choose  his  em- 
ployment,  and  to  receive  the  wages  of  his  labor  —  Miller  had  a 
handsome  salary,  as  clerk,  while  m  Mr.  MacDowell's  ofiice. 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     L».    HKUSTIS. 


Ill 


•,  by  appeal- 
ally  touched 
;d.     On  the 
J  Bay,  where 
len  who  had 
?.    .The  first 
leeing  them, 
notified  sev- 
to  harbor  or 
kr  a  penalty 
f  detected  in 
ey  trusted  to 
derftil  charm 
It  their  heels, 
ed,  and  took 
ly  Bay,  where 
le  more  than 
m.     At  night 
returning  to 
tluntarily  sur- 
vere  confined 
en  Ponds  for 
>eing  illegally 
and  were  im- 

[iller  gives  a 
During  the 
conceivable 
jks,  however, 
a  very  worthy 
im  an  intelli- 
of  the  church 
sentence  ex- 
in  the  fam- 
f  the  Station, 
)piness,  until 
Ssq.,  the  first 
ly  Attorney- 
obtained  his 
I  allows  the 
loose  his  em- 
Miller  had  a 
8  office.  " 


u 


Stewart,  Miller's  companion  at  Port  Arthur,  at  the  expiration 
of  one  year,  obtained  a  comfortable  situation  in  the  family  of  an 
officer,  where  he  gradually  recovered  from  the  effects  of  the  hard 
treatment  he  had  experienced. 

Their  attempt  to  escape  caused  the  rest  of  us  to  be  very  closely 
watched,  and  we  were  dressed  up  in  convict  uniforms,  or  what 
are  there  called  suits  of"  magpie,"  one  half  being  black,  and  the 
other  yellow,  arranged  so  that  the  frotit  of  one  leg  was  yellow  and 
the  other  black.  We  had  leather  caps,  and  altogether  a  more 
striped-looking  set  of  fellows  was  never  seen. 

On  the  13th  of  September,  having  been  at  Lovely  Banks  about 
three  months,  we  were  removed  to  Green  Ponds  Station,  nine 
miles  nearer  Hobart  Town.  Here  we  remained  ninftgnonths, 
and  were  kept  at  work  on  the  road.  The  government's  con- 
structing a  great  macadamized  road  between  Hobart  Town  and 
Launceston,  the  two  principal  towns  in  Van  Dieman's  Land,  and 
on  opposite  sides  of  the  Island.  It  was  on  this  road  that  we  were 
employed  most  of  the  time  during  our  two  years'  probation. 

We  had  to  go  three  miles  to  our  work  in  the  morning,  and  re- 
turn at  night,  oflen  travelling  a  mile  afler  the  stars  were  shining. 
On  reaching  the  Station,  we  had  a  pint  of  skilly,  and  then  laid  our- 
selves down  on  miserable  pallets  of  straw,  to  be  aroused  by 
the  bell  as  soon  as  the  grey  morning  dawned.  If  not  on  hand, 
at  roU-call,  the  absentee  would  be  doomed  to  seven  or  fourteen 
days^  solitary  confinement,  in  a  loathsome  cell,  full  of  vermin, 
where  he  was  fed  on  bread  and  water.  Men  were  oflen  sen- 
tenced, for  thirty  days  at  a  time,  in  these  detestable  dungeons. 

The  superintendent,  a  Scotchmany  who  went  by  the  name  of 
Bobby  Nutman,  had  the  reputation  of  being  the  severest  task- 
master in  Van  Dieman's  Land,  and  that  is  saying  a  great  deal. 
When  he  was  superintendent  at  Long  Meadows,  the  number  of 
men  flogged  every  morning  was  said  to  average  twcnty-jive.  On 
one  occasion,  thirty'Senen  hundred  lashes  were  served  out  to  his 
gang  before  breakfast,  the  men  being  tied  to  a  cart  to  receive 
them. 

We  got  along  with  Bobby,  however,  as  well  as  we  did  with 
others.  He  worked  us  hard,  and  so  did  all  of  them.  He  made 
an  overseer  of  another  Scotchman,  named  Atchison,  who  had 
been  a  negro-driver  in  the  West  Indies,  and  who  boasted  that  he 
had  flogged  all  the  men  and  women  in  his  gang,  being  more  than 
seventy,  at  one  time,  for  a  trivial  offence,  and  that  among  them 
was  a  young  female  slave,  with  whom  he  was  in  the  habit  of  im- 
proper intercourse,  and  by  whom  he  had  a  child  that  he  left  in 


113 


CAl»TIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


:| 


i  ■1 


i      !  ill 


slavery !  Under  such  an  overseer,  it  could  only  be  expected  that 
we  should  meet  with  hard  usage. 

In  the  course  of  two  or  three  months,  Nutman  left  for  Scot- 
land, and  his  place  was  supplied  by  one  John  Pooke,  a  new  hand 
at  the  business.  As  he  was  inexperienced,  he  left  the  direction 
of  matters,  in  a  great  measure,  to  Atchison,  who  was  principal 
overseer,  and  who  exercised  his  authority  with  the  utmost  rigor 
and  severity. 

With  a  view  of  promoting  his  own  advancement,  he  endeavored 
to  excite  the  men  to  revolt  and  refuse  to  work,  taking  good  care 
to  keep  the  plan  from  a  few  of  us,  who  knew  his  character, 
and  would  have  detected  his  purpose  at  once.  After  he  had  en- 
listed a  fi|w  men'  in  his  project,  he  went  to  O.  W.  Smith,  who 
had  beolf^romoted  to  the  place  of  sub-overseer,  and  said,  "  Now 
is  the  time  for  us  to  raise  ourselves ;  I  have  talked  with  the  men, 
and  they  have  agreed  to  revolt ;  let  us  write  to  Captain  Spode, 
divulging  the  plan,  and  we  shall  get  promoted  for  it."  Smith  in- 
dignantly spurned  the  nefarious  proposition,  and  immediately 
cautioned  the  men  against  having  any  thing  to  do  with  the  plot. 
Atchison  was  ever  afterwards  a  relentless  enemy  to  Smith,  and 
also  to  others  who  had  used  their  in&uence  to  defeat  his  project. 
I  had  been  made  a  sub-overseer,  but  as  I  woulci  not  drive  the 
men  as  hard  as  they  had  previously  been  driven,  my  term  of  ser- 
vice in  that  capacity  was  very  short.  I  was  "  broke,"  and  set  to 
work  again  on  the  carts.  .,     . 

Pooke,  the  superintendent,  was  detected  in  selling  flour  that 
belonged  to  government,  and  pocketing  the  money.  For  this  he 
was  dismissed  from  office,  and  a  Captain  Wright  appointed  in 
his  place.  He  very  soon  began  to  appropriate  a  considerable 
part  of  our  rations  to  his  own  use,  of  which  we  complained  to 
the  magistrate,  and,  strange  to  say,  our  complaint  was  listened 
to,  and  the  purloiner  of  our  ^'  daily  bread  "  received  his  walking- 
ticket.  During  his  administration,  he  sent  Solomon  Reynolds 
and  T.iOmas  Baker  out  into  the  woods  to  cut  timber,  and  furnished 
them  with  a  saw  and  other  implements  to  work  with.  This  was 
contrary  to  the  government 'regulations.  After  the  timber  was 
cut,  Wright  took  it  for  government  use,  charging  the  usual  price, 
and  transferring  the  money  to  his  own  pocket.  Reynolds  and 
Baker  sold  the  tools  they  had  used,  and  told  Wright  they  had 
been  stolen.  The  superintendent  disbelieved  the  story,  but 
dared  not  say  anything  to  the  magistrate  about  the  affair,  as  it 
woiild  lead  to  the  exposure  of  his  own  peculation.  He  found  the 
Yankees  were  a  little  too  shrewd  for  his  purposes. 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL    D.    IIF.U8TI8. 


113 


pected  that 

i  for  Scot- 
El  new  hand 
le  direction 
s  principal 
tmost  rigor 

endeavored 
t  good  care 
character, 
he  had  en- 
Smith,  who 
laid,  "  Now 
th  the  men, 
tain  Spode, 
Smith  in- 
immediately 
ith  the  plot. 
Smith,  and 
his  project. 
)t  drive  the 
term  of  ser- 
"  and  set  to 

g  flour  that 
For  this  he 
ppointed  in 
considerable 
implained  to 
vas  listened 
lis  walking- 
Reynolds 
id  furnished 
This  was 
timber  was 
usual  price, 
eynolds  and 
ht  they  had 
story,  but 
affair,  as  it 
e  found  the 


^1 


r? 


While  we  were  at  the  Green  Ponds  Station,  and  when  we  had 
been  fourteen  monthn  in  the  colony,  the  Governor  came  to  see 
us  for  the  third  time,  and  told  us  that  he  had  received  the  in- 
structions from  Lord  John  Russell,  in  relation  to  our  treatment, 
which  he  had  written  for  immediately  aAer  our  arrival.  In  an- 
swer to  the  Governor's  inquiry,  whether  he  should  grant  us 
•*  tickets  of  leave  "  at  the  expiration  of  two  years,  Her  Majesty's 
Secretary  had  authorized  him  to  allow  us  whatever  indulgence 
he  saw  proper.  The  Governor  then  assured  us  that,  if  our  con- 
duct remained  good,  he  should,  at  the  end  of  two  years,  give  us 
tickets,  conferring  the  privilege  of  free  labor  in  every  part  of  the 
Island  except  the  District  of  Hobart  Town. 

On  the  14th  day  of  May,  we  left'Green  Ponds  for  Bridgawater, 
twelve  miles  from  Hobart  Town.  Here,  for  the  first  tiflie,  we 
were  herded  with  English  convicts.  There  were  about  300  of 
these  criminals  at  this  Station.  They  were  the  vilest  of  the  vile, 
and  it  was  only  by  the  strictest  watch  that  we  prevented  them 
from  stealing  our  rations.  The  moment  a  man's  back  was 
turned,  "  grab  '^  was  the  game.     We  were»employed  in  building 

bridge  across  the  River  Derwent,  for  which  we  had  to  quarry 
and  cart  the  stone.  A  nephew  of  Sir  George  Arthur,  named 
Mason,  officiated  as  a  magistrate  at  this  Station.  He  was  called 
about  the  meanest  man  there  was  in  Van  Dieman's  Land  ;  but, 
among  so  many  mean  characters,  it  would  be  difficult  to  decide 
which  was  entitled  to  the  highest  place  on  the  scroll  of  infamy. 
Mason  found  it  difficult  to  subdue  certain  independent  traits  of 
character,  which  Yankees  are  in  the  habit  of  manifesting  when 
tyrants  undertake  to  domineer  over  them,  and  he  wrote  to  the 
government  at  Hobart  Town,  that  we  had  the  old  spirit  in  us  yet, 
and  he  thought  we  had  better  be  separated,  and  sent  to  different 
parts  of  the  Island,  as  it  was  dangerous  to  keep  so  many  of  us 
together.  In  reply  to  this  intimation,  orders  were  received  to 
disperse  us  in  various  directions. 

On  the  28th  of  May,  fifteen  days  afler  our  arrival  at  Bridge- 
water,  eight  of  our  men  were  taken  off,  we  knew  not  where,  but 
aflerwards  ascertained  that  they  went  to  Jerusalem,  in  the  inte- 
rior. On  their  journey  they  passed  through  Jericho  and  crossed 
the  River  Jordan,  and  at  Jerusalem  they  "  fell  among  thieves." 
There  were  no  Samaritans  in  that  region,  and  the  Levites,  as  of 
old,  "  passed  by  on  the  other  side." 

On  the  next  day  the  rest  of  us  were  divided  into  six  lots,  and 
sent  to  as  many  different  Stations,  remote  from  each  other,  and 
each  party  was  kept  ignorant  of  the  destination  of  the  others. 


11! 

f 

Jill 


114 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTrRES     OP 


The  company  that  I  was  in  was  a  large  one,  numbering  twenty- 
two,  and  we  were  taken  to  Brown's  River  Station,  nine  miles 
south  of  Hobart  Town.  Here  we  found,  a  chain-gang.  I  had 
seen  several  of  these  gangs  before,-  but  this  was  the  first  time  I 
had  been  located  with  one. 

The  conveniences  for  flogging,  at  this  Station,  were  in  a  high 
state  of  perfection.  A  portion  of  the  time,  these  floggings  took 
place  as  oAcn  as  five  mornings  in  a  week,  and  the  number  of 
culprits  thus  doomed  to  ignominious  punishment,  varied  from  one 
to  ten.  All  hands  were  called  together  to  witness  these  inhu- 
man whippings.  We  were  formed  into  a  hollow  square,  one 
side  of  which  was  a  guard  of  soldiers.  The  superintendent,  the 
oversee(8,  the  physician,  the  flngellator,  and  the  men  to  be 
scourged,  were  stationed  in  the  centre  of  the  square.  The  su- 
perintendent having  read  the  warrant  of  the  magistrate,  ordering 
the  punishment,  and  prescribing  the  number  of  lashes  to  be  in- 
flicted, the  offender  was  then  tied  to  a  triangle,  with  his  bare 
back  exposed,  and  the  flagellator  pulled  off  his  own  coat,  that  he 
might  have  a  free  use  of  his  brawny  arm,  and  be  enabled  to  strike 
a  heavy  blow.  The  doctor  stood  by,  to  decide  whether  the  men 
could  endure  their  sentence ;  if  he  thought  they  could  not  live 
through  it,  he  ordered  the  remaining  lashes  to  be  reserved  until 
such  time  as  the  man  would  be  able  to  bear  them.  The  flagel- 
lator then  commenced  his  task,  and  at  every  stroke  of  the  cat-'o- 
nine  tails,  a  scream  would  come  from  the  sufferer,  and  his  body 
would  writhe  in  agony.  After  a  few  lashes  had  been  inflicted, 
the  blood  would  begin  to  run,  and,  before  the  close,  the  flesh  on 
the  poor  man's  back  would  be  lacerated  dreadfully.  The  marks 
of  these  floggings  almost  invariably  endure  as  long  as  life  lasts. 
Some  of  the  men,  who  had  iron  nerves,  would  receive  an  ordi- 
nary sentence  without  much  wincing,  even  though  their  backs 
were  badly  mutilated ;  they  had  a  notion  that  it  was  a  mark  of 
unmanly  weakness  to  scream,  but  their  countenances  showed 
that  it  was  diflicult  to  refrain  from  it  themselves. 

The  lowest  punishment  is  three  dozen  lashes,  which  is  inflict- 
ed for  the  most  trivial  offences.  Seventy-five  lashes  is  a  common 
sentence ;  and  the  highest  punishment  which  a  single  magistrate 
can  order  is  one  hundred  lashes.  If  the  offence  is  considered 
heinous,  the  culprit  is  tried  by  two  magistrates,  who  can  order 
any  punishment  they  see  fit.  They  occasionally  go  as  high  as 
six  hundred  lashes.  Men  are  sometimes  flogged  to  death  ;  but  I 
never  witnessed  the  infliction  of  more  than  one  hundred  lashes, 
and  that  is  enough  to  shock  every  feeling  of  humanity. 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL     D.    HEUSTIH. 


115 


ing  Iwenty- 
,  nine  miles 
ing.  I  had 
first  time  I 

re  in  a  high 
igginga  took 
number  of 
ied  from  one 
these  inhu- 
square,  one 
itendent,  the 
men   to  be 
re.     The  su- 
ate,  ordering 
hes  to  be  in- 
^ith  his  bare 
coat,  that  he 
)led  to  strike 
ther  the  men 
luld  not  live 
eserved  until 
The  flagel- 
of  the  cat-'o- 
md  his  body 
en  inflicted, 
the  flesh  on 
The  marks 
as  life  lasts, 
eive  an  ordi- 
their  backs 
a  mark  of 
ices   showed 

ch  is  inflict- 
is  a  common 
e  magistrate 

considered 
Ho  can  order 

as  high  as 
leath ;  but  I 
dred  lashes, 


None  of  the  Americans  were  flogged ;  we  had  solemnly  re- 
Bolved  never  to  submit  to  it.  Instant  death,  in  our  minds,  was 
far  preferable  to  such  tortures.  It  was  probably  deemed  unwise 
to  attempt  it,  and  we  escaped  the  most  odious  of  all  punishments. 
Solitary  confinement,  on  bread  and  water,  for  many  days  at  a 
time,  was  awarded  to  several  of  our  party  ;  but  not  even  this  was 
ever  administered  to  me. 

I  became  acquainted  with  a  man  who  told  me  that  he  was 
once  sentenced  to  receive  300  lashes,  for  attempting  to  run  away. 
After  he  had  taken  200,  the  doctor  —  who  had  occasionally  felt 
of  his  pulse,  to  determine  how  far  life  would  hold  out  —  said  he 
could  not  bear  the  other  hundred  then.  With  his  back  gashed 
and  bleeding,  he  was  thrust  into  a  cell,  where  he  remained  two 
or  three  days,  and  waai  then  taken  out  to  receive  the  other  hun- 
dred. He  begged  that  the  doctor  would  defer  the  punishment  a 
few  days,  till  his  back  was  better,  alleging  that  maggots  had  got 
into  it.  "  Yes,  I  see  there  a  few,"  said  the  doctor,  as  he  hastily 
examined  the  wounds,  "  but  it  will  only  stir  them  up ;  go  on, 
flagellator."  * 

On  some  Stations  it  had  been  customary  for  the  magistrate  to 
ride  out  to  the  place  where  the  convicts  were  at  work,  every 
morning,  for  the  purpose  of  hearing  such  complaints  as  the  over- 
seer had  to  make,  and  awarding  the  punishments.  Such  inci- 
dents as  the  following  were  not  of  unfrequent  occurrence,  as  I 
was  assured  on  good  authority.  The  magistrate  would  sit  on  his 
horse  and  order  the  men  mustered  before  him.  He  would  then 
ask  the  overseer,  "  How  many  haVe  you  for  trial?"  The  answer 
would  be  a  call  on  Tom,  Dick,  and  Harry,  to  step  forward,  and 
the  number  thus  called  out  of  the  line  would  perhaps  be  twenty. 
They  were  sure  to  be  punished,  if  the  overseer  preferred  any 
charge  against  them,  however  unfounded  or  trivial  it  might  be, 
and  it  was  useless  to  attempt  to  make  any  defence.  Sometimes 
the  magistrate  would  remark,  "  You  haven't  as  many  as  usual." 
The  overseer,  to  make  up  the  complement,  would  glance  along 
the  line  in  quest  of  more  victims.  At  length  his  eye  would  rest 
on  one,  and  the  potent  call,  "  Come  out  here,  Sam  !"  would  in- 
sure the  unfortunate  wight  an  introduction  to  the  cat-'o-nine-tails. 

Sam  would  venture  to  remonstrate,  saying  that  he  had  been 
guilty  of  no  misconduct,  and  had  done  his  task  the  day  before. 

"  Never  mind,"  replied  the  overseer,  *'  you  won't  do  it  to- 
morrow ;  three  dozen  will  square  it." 

The  Brown's  River  Station  was  a  new  one,  and  we  assisted  in 
erecting  the  buildings.     After  cutting  the  timber  in  the  woods. 


116 


AOVBNTURKM    OV    CAPTAIN    IIEUST18. 


it  wai  borne  on  our  ihoultlori  to  the  Station,  a  distance  little  lesa 
than  a  mile;  and,  in  carrying  lome  of  the  large  logs,  as  many  as 
100  men  would  be  rei^uirod  on  a  single  stick. 

Our  party  were  quite  unwilling  to  associate  with  criminals 
from  the  lowest  sinks  of  iniquity  in  England,  and  we  asked  per- 
mission of  the  magistrate  niid  superintendent  to  build  ourselves 
a  separate  hut,  which  we  would  do  in  the  Saturday  afternoons 
allotted  us  to  do  our  washing.  The  request  was  granted,  and 
we  worked  zealously  in  cutting  and  carrying  the  timber,  and  in 
building  the  hut.  At  last  it  was  completed,  and  we  were  con- 
gratulating each  other  on  the  prospect  of  being  speedily  separated 
from  our  disagreeable  companions,  when  a  company  of  soldiers 
came  down  from  Hobart  Town,  and  the  magistrate  gave  them 
our  hut  for  their  barracks,  without  saying  a  word  to  us  about  it. 
Thus  much  we  got  for  our  extra  toils. 

In  like  manner,  on  Saturday  afternoon,  we  built  a  kitchen  for 
a  sub-superintendent,  for  which  he  voluntarily  gave  each  man  a 
sheep's  head,  which  we  boiled  for  our  Sunday  dinner,  and  es- 
teemed it  a  great  luxury  I  The  principal  superintendent,  when 
he  heard  of  our  feast,  entered  a  complaint  to  Captain  Jones,  the 
visiting  magistrate,  who  instantly  dismissed  the  sub-superin- 
tendent, and  said  he  had  a  good  mind  to  sentence  us  to  an  addi- 
tional year's  probation  on  the  road,  for  receiving  the  present ! 

This  Captain  Jones  was  a  hard-hearted  and  tyrannical  man. 
As  we  were  bathing  in  the  river,  one  Sunday  morning,  we  caught 
a  few  crayfish,  a  species  of  lobster,  which  we  cooked  for  dinner. 
Jones  heard  of  it,  and  told  us  if  we  ever  did  it  again  he  would 
punish  us  severely.  We  had  every  reason  to  believe  that  he 
would  execute  his  threats,  for  we  witnessed  a  specimen  of  his 
conduct,  on  one  occasion,  which  assured  us  that  he  would  not 
hesitate  in  the  commission  of  any  oct  of  barbarity.  A  working 
ox,  which  had  broken  its  leg,  was  knocked  in  the  head  by  the 
teamster,  its  hide  taken  off,  and  the  carcass  left  near  the  place 
where  the  prisoners  were  at  work.  About  forty  of  the  English 
convicts  cut  off  pieces  of  meat  from  this  ox,  which  they  roasted 
over  a  fire  where  their  dinner  was  cooking.  For  this  offence, 
all  of  them  were  sentenced  to  an  additional  term  of  probation, 
varying  from  one  to  two  years,  and  some  were  sent  to  Port  Ar- 
thur to  work  out  this  sentence. 

Only  two  or  three  days  before  we  were  to  receive  our  tickets, 
this  infamous  magistrate  ordered  all  the  hair  to  be  cut  off  our 
heads  as  close  as  possible,  notwithstanding  the  superintendent 
remonstrated  against  it.  •  ,. 


117 


e  little  less 
18  inuny  ai 

criminals 
asked  per- 
d  ourselves 
afternoons 
anted,  and 
>er,  and  in 
were  con- 
r  separated 
of  soldiers 
gave  them 
IS  about  it. 

kitchen  for 
ach  man  a 
er,  and  es- 
dent,  when 
Jones,  the 
ub^uperin- 
to  an  addi- 
present ! 
inical  man. 
f  we  caught 
for  dinner, 
in  he  would 
ve  that  he 
men  of  his 
would  not 
A  working 
ead  by  the 
r  the  place 
he  English 
hey  roasted 
his  offence, 
:  probation, 
to  Port  Ar- 

our  tickets, 
cut  off  our 
erintendent 

. , ,  * ,  - 


CHAPTER   XI. 

Our  partial  Etnancipation — Journey  into  the  Interior — 7^ 
Good  Woman* s  ,Inn — Lodgings  by  the  Wayside  —  Mima 
Vale — Mr.  Kermode's  Farm — Agreement  to  cultivate  it  on 
Shares — Death  and  Burial  of  Alson  Owen,  at  Rothhury  — 
Celebration  of  the  Fourth  of  July — A  successful  Experiment 
^in  cradling  Wheat. 

On  the  16th  day  of  February,  1842,  our  two  years'  probation 
having  expired,  and  notice  having  been  given  in  the  government 
gazette  that  we  weie  to  be  allowed  "  tickets  of  leave,"  we  went 
up  to  Hobart  Town  to  obtain  our  passes.  Instead  of  giving  us 
the  liberty  of  the  whole  Island,  as  the  Governor  had  promised, 
our  tickets  restricted  us  to  one  district,  each  man  being  allowed 
to  choose  one  out  of  six  of  the  interior  districts. 

After  a  prisoner  gets  a  "  ticket  of  leave,"  he  is  allowed  to  work 
for  himself,  and  has  the  proceeds  of  his  labor.  He  is  still,  how- 
ever, kept  under  very  strict  regulations.  He  is  not  permitted  to 
go  even  from  one  house  to  another,  or  into  the  woods,  without  a 
pass,  signed  by  his  employer,  or  by  a  magistrate.  If  he  should 
go  without  a  pass,  or,  having  one,  should  go  to  any  other  place 
than  the  one  named,  he  is  liable  to  be  sent  back  again  to  work 
on  the  government  road,  a  year  or  more. 

The  general  practice,  in  regard  to  granting  these  tickets,  is  as 
follows :  Those  sentenced  for  life  have  to  work  eight  years,  with 
good  behavior,  before  they  are  entitled  to  one ;  those  sentenced 
for  fourteen  years,  must  work  six ;  and  others  in  like  proportion. 
This  rule  is  very  frequently  violated,  however,  when  the  govern- 
ment desire  to  keep  prisoners  in  their  service.  The  way  it  is 
done  is  to  get  up  some  fictitious  charge  of  bad  conduct,  hire  a 
few  perjured  villains  to  swear  that  it  is  true,  and  then  sentence 
the  victim  to  an  additional  term  of  probation.  Such  is  the  jus- 
tice found  in  Van  Dieman's  Land. 

The  cause  of  Canadian  liberty  had  many  friends  in  England, 
including  several  influential  men,  members  of  Parliament,  and 
eminent  philanthropists,  whose  sympathies  were  strong  in  our 
behalf.    Their  efforts,  in  conjunction  with  the  appeals  of  our 


118 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


ir 


'  ii' 


m 
pi 


ffl    «f': 


friends  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic,  undoubtedly  saved  us  from 
years  of  slavery.  The  wife  of  Benjamin  Wait,  one  of  the  party 
taken  at  the  Short  Hills,  crossed  the  Atlantic  and  spent  several 
months  in  England,  in  earnest  endeavors  to  procure  the  pardon 
of  her  husband  and  his  associates.  Doubtless  we  are  much  in- 
debted to  her  for  our  partial  emancipation ;  and  the  story  of  her 
devoted  and  heroic  services,  embalmed  in  all  our  hearts,  shall 
be  handed  down  to  other  generations,  as  a  bright  example  of  con- 
jugal fidelity  and  active  philanthropy,  worthy  of  an  immortality 
of  honor.     She  is  doubtless  rejoicing. among  the  angels  in  heaven. 

When  a  prisoner  has  obtained  a  '^  ticket  of  leave,"  his  first 
business  is  to  seek  employment.  This,  in  most  cases,  is  a  dis- 
couraging task.  At  best,  he  is  barely  able  to  earn  a  living.  The 
best  of  English  laborers  could  be  hired  for  twenty  dollars  a  year! 
The  Yankees  would  not  work  for  less  than  an  English  shilling  a 
day,  or  about  seventy-five  dollars  a  year.  Even  these  low  wages 
were  very  much  reduced  before  we  left  the  colony.  Many  em- 
ployers keep  their  laborers  so  meanly,  that  they  expend  a  consid- 
erable part  of  their  wages  in  buying  additional  food,  and  the 
remainder  would  scarcely  suffice  to  procure  very  indifferent 
clothing.  The  holder  of  a  ticket  is  not  absolved  from  the  liability 
of  again  being  pressed  into  the  government  service,  whenever  he 
is  wanted.  Notwithstanding  nil  these  things,  a  ticket  is  an  ob- 
ject of  earnest  desire,  as  affording  the  means  of  escape  from 
the  tyranny  of  the  government  overseers. 

Having  obtained  our  tickets,  we  went  to  the  Tench  in  quest 
of  the  clothing  which  had  been  taken  from  us  two  years  before. 
We  found  a  small  part  of  it,  covered  up  with  casks  and  other 
rubbish,  which  it  took  us  half  a  day  to  remove,  and  then  we  dis- 
covered the  rats  had  ruined  what  two-legged  thieves  had  lefl. 
The  clothes  we  had  on  had  been  worn  six  months,  and  they  were 
little  better  than  their  weight  in  rags.  We  were  to  travel  one 
hundred  miles  into  the  country,  destitute  of  money,  friends,  or 
credit,  but  with  joyous  hearts,  in  view  of  our  emancipation. 

No  provisions  having  been  furnished  us,  I  went  to  Mr.  Gunn, 
and  told  him  we  shoula  need  food  on  our  journey,  and  had  no 
money  to  buy  it  with.  He  said  we  were  off  the  hands  of  govern- 
ment, and  they  had  nothing  more  to  do  in  finding  us  provisions ; 
but,  in  conclusion,  he  told  me  he  would  furnish  us  some  bread 
and  meat,  on  his  own  responsibility. 

Each  man  took  his  bread  and  meat  under  his  arm,  and  we  all 
marched  off,  as  independent  as  hogs  on  the  ice.  We  travelled 
about  four  miles  that  day,  before  night  set  in,  when  we  halted 


,1 


ft 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    HEUSTIS. 


110 


^  saved  us  from 
ne  of  the  party 
id  spent  several 
sure  the  pardon 
3  are  much  in- 
the  story  of  her 
>ur  hearts,  shall 
example  of  con- 
an  immortality 
ngels  in  heaven, 
leave,"  his  first 
cases,  is  a  dis- 
,  a  living.  The 
dollars  a  year! 
iglish  shilling  a 
hese  low  wages 
ny.  Many  em- 
xpeud  a  copsid- 
food,  and  the 
I'ery  indifferent 
rom  the  liability 
;e,  whenever  he 
ticket  is  an  ob- 
of  escape  from 

Pench  in  quest 
i^o  years  before, 
asks  and  other 
nd  then  we  dis- 
lieves  had  lefl. 
,  and  they  were 
3  to  travel  one 
ney,  friends,  or 
ncipation. 
It  to  Mr.  Gunn, 
3y,  and  had  no 
ands  of  govern- 
r  us  provisions ; 
i  us  some  bread 

irm,  and  we  all 

We  travelled 

vhen  we  halted 


to  build  a  fire  by  the  wayside,  where  we  intended  to  camp  out  on 
the  ground.  While  we  were  making  these  preparations  for  the 
night,  a  landlord,  whose  house  was  not  far  distant,  invited  us  to 
go  and  sleep  in  his  bar-room,  where  there  was  a  fire.  He  also 
loaned  us  a  frying-pan,  to  cook  our  meat.  We  lodged  on  the 
bare  floor,  and  thought  ourselves  quite  lucky  in  getting  even 
such  accommodations. 

Early  the  next  morning  we  resumed  our  journey,  and  at  night 
we  arrived  at  a  public  house,  called  the  "  Good  Woman's  Inn," 
and  known  throughout  the  country  as  **  Mother  Barnes'."  This 
house  was  near  the  Green  Ponds  Station,  and  Mrs.  Barnes  had 
been  acquainted  with  several  of  our  party.  She  gave  us  a  sup- 
per and  comfortable  lodgings,  and  in  the  morning  we  left  very 
early,  after  thanking  the  good  woman  most  heartily  for  her  kind 
hospitality. 

On  account  of  sore  feet,  and  other  infirmities,  some  of  the 
party  began  to  lag,  and  we  became  divided  into  small  flocks,  as 
we  pursued  our  journey.  At  Green  Ponds,  some  of  the  men  di- 
verged to  the  left,  and  went  to  Both  well,  distant  about  twenty 
miles,  where  they  obtained  employment.  The  rest  of  us  kept  on 
the  main  road  toward  Launceston.  On  the  third  night,  six  or 
seven  of  us  arrived  at  Lemon  Springs,  where  a  man  named  Page 
kept  a  hotel.  We  asked  permission  to  sleep  in  his  barn,  which 
he  refused.  We  finally  camped  down  by  the  side  of  the  road, 
on  the  bare  ground,  where  the  little  twinkling  stars  of  heaven 
kept  watch  over  us,  and  the  gentle  night  breeze  fanned  our 
cheeks.  The  next  morning  we  again  resumed  our  march,  and 
arrived  at  the  town  of  Oatland,  in  Oatland  District,  before  we 
breakfasted.  Here  we  learned  that  William  Kermode  and  Son, 
wealthy  farmers,  on  the  Macquarie  River,  eighteen  miles  dis- 
tant, wanted  to  hire  us.  Mr.  Kermode  was  one  of  the  Governor's 
Council,  and  had  heard  favorable  reports  concerning  us,  which 
made  him  desirous  of  securing  our  services.  The  name  of  his 
estate  was  Mona  Vale,  and  it  was  situated  partly  in  the  Oatland 
District  and  partly  in  the  Campbelltown  District,  so  that  those 
who  had  tickets  for  either  of  these  districts  could  work  in  both, 
on  his  farm.  We  went  direct  to  Mona  Vale,  where  we  found 
four  or  five  of  our  comrades,  who  had  been  working  out  their 
probation  at  a  Station  near  by,  and  who,  after  receiving  their 
tickets,  had  been  employed  by  Kermode  and  Son,  at  a  shilling  a 
day.  Our  friends  procured  us  a  supper,  and  we  had  a  good 
night's  rest  on  the  straw  which  they  had  been  threshing,  anci 
that  was  a  bed  of  down  to  us. 


120 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


1 


'  n 


ii^ 


The  next  morning  Mr.  Kermode  proposed  to  let  us  have  a 
large  tract  of  land,  called  the  Blackman  farm,  to  cultivate  upon 
shares.  After  exploring  the  land,  twenty-eight  of  us  engaged  to 
till  it,  the  agreement  being  in  writing.  Mr.  Kermode  furnished 
us  with  cheap  clothing,  beds,  provisions,  d^c,  at  prices  agreed 
upon,  for  which  he  was  to  take  his  pay  in  grain,  at  the  market 
price,  when  the  crops  had  been  secured.  There  was  a  house  on 
the  farm,  in  which  we  lived  in  comparative  comfort.  We  sowed 
between  four  and  five  hundred  acres  of  wheat  and  oats,  from 
which  good  crops  were  obtained.  To  do  the  ploughing  we  had 
sixteen  yoke  of  oxen,  and  the  harrowing  was  done  with  horses. 

At  Rothbury,  on  the  River  Isis,  Orin  W.  Smith,  and  three  or 
four  others,  had  taken  a  job  of  "  grubbing  trees,'*  that  is,  digging 
them  up  by  the  roots,  for  the  purpose  of  clearing  the  land,  on  the 
estate  of  Mr.  Sutherland.  Rothbury  is  about  twenty-five  miles 
from  Mona  Vale.  Before  it  was  time  to  plough,  four  or  five  of 
our  party  went  up  to  assist  Smith,  and  he  in  turn  was  to  assist  us. 

On  the  morning  of  the  24th  of  March,  Alson  Owen  went  into 
an  epileptic  fit,  and  lived  only  thirty  hours  after  it,  during  which 
time  he  had  forty-five  fits.  We  immediately  sent  for  a  doctor, 
who  came  and  bled  him,  and  gave  directions  in  regard  to  his 
treatment.  We  did  every  thing  in  our  power  to  relieve  the  suf- 
ferer, but  all  in  vain.  When  he  was  in  the  fits,  his  whole  sys- 
tem was  shaken  by  the  most  violent  convulsions.  During  the  in- 
tervals, he  lay  in  a  stupid  state  of  unconsciousness.  I  sat  on  the 
bed  and  held  him  in  my  arms  all  night.  After  his  death,  Hiram 
Sharp  and  myself  went  to  Mona  Vale,  on  foot,  to  get  a  coflin. 
Mr.  Kermode  gave  us  the  stufi*,  and  Solomon  Reynolds  and  Mo- 
ses A.  Dutcher  made  the  coffin.  Mr.  Kermode  then  sent  a  man 
with  a  horse  and  wagon,  to  carry  us  back. 

Mrs.  Sutherland  gave  us  linen  to  lay  out  the  body.  On  the 
next  Sunday  we  followed  the  remains  of  our  friend  to  the  grave. 
There  was  no  clergyman  in  the  vicinity,  and  the  Episcopal  burial- 
service  was  read  by  one  of  the  neighbors,  who  usually  officiated 
on  such  occasions.  Mr.  Sutherland's  son,  and  a  schoolmate  who 
was  making  him  a  visit,  put  on  mourning,  and  walked  in  the  fu- 
neral procession.  The  body  was  laid  in  the  ground,  by  the  side 
of  Mrs.  Sutherland's  child  and  sister,  there  to  sleep  until  the  final 
resurrection.  Though  there  was  no  parade  or  ostentation,  I 
never  attended  a  funeral  where  greater  solemnity  or  more  heart- 
^felt  sorrow  seemed  to  prevail.  Our  departed  friend  —  we  might 
almost  call  him  our  brother  —  was  endeared  to  us  by  many  noble 
traits  of  character,  which  had  rendered  him  a  favorite  companion 


iff 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.    HEUSTIS» 


121 


s  to  assist  us. 


[1  sent  a  man 


in  oJI  our  trials  and  sufferings.  To  part  with  him,  in  this  sad 
manner,  was  painful  in  the  extreme.  His  age  was  twenty-seven 
years. 

After  we  had  finished  sowing  the  grain,  we  concluded  that 
a  much  smaller  number  of  men  would  be  adequate  to  take  care 
of  the  farm,  and  do  the  harvesting.  With  Mr.  Kermode's  con- 
sent, about  half  our  party  left,  to  seek  employment  elsewhere. 
Previous  to  leaving,  however,  the  anniversary  of  our  national  in- 
dependence arrived,  and  we  honored  the  day  by  such  a  celebra- 
tion as  our  limited  means  would  allow.  Our  thoughts  were  of 
home,  our  dear  native  land,  where  liberty  hath  her  dwelling- 
place,  and  where  British  tyrants  are  not  allowed  to  pollute  the 
soil  with  their  odious  system  of  government. 

One  of  our  number,  acting  under  that  strong  feeling  of  inde- 
pendence which  the  associations  of  the  day  are  so  well  calculated 
to  inspire  in  the  bosom  of  every  American,  went  to  Ross,  three 
miles  distant,  without  a  pass.  He  was  arrested  by  a  constable, 
and  taken  before  a  magistrate,  charged  with  being  intoxicated. 
The  magistrate,  whose  name  was  Tollis,  had  travelled  some  in 
the  United  States,  and  knew  that  the  Fourth  of  July  was  our  great 
national  holyday.  When  he  found  an  American  arraigned  be- 
fore him  for  getting  somewhat  high  on  that  day,  he  remarked, 
"If  every  one  of  those  men  had  been  found  so  druuk  that  they 
couldn't  walk,  on  the  Fourth  of  July,  I  would  not  punish  onr  of 
them;"  and  then  dismissed  our  friend,  without  so  much  as  rep- 
rimanding him  for  his  improper  conduct. 

On  the  5th  of  July,  I  went  to  Campbelltown,  in  quest  of  em- 
ployment. The  first  business  I  engaged  in  was  making  winnow- 
ing machines.  Some  of  my  comrades  learned  the  trade  from  me, 
and,  being  more  expert  workmen,  became  such  powerful  rivals 
that  I  was  compelled  to  abandon  my  new  occupation. 

I  next  turned  my  attention  to  getting  out  shingles.  Three  of 
us  took  a  job  that  lasted  till  January.  During  that  time,  we 
were  robbed  of  bedding,  clothing,  and  provisions,  to  the  amount 
of  fifty  or  sixty  dollars,  by  the  bush-rangers.  As  we  had  to  learn 
the  trade  to  begin  with,  we  simply  made  a  living  by  the  job. 

In  January,  1843,  Elon  Fellows  proposed  to  go  out  and  take  a 
job  of  cradling  wheat.  I  told  him  I  had  never  swung  a  cradle 
in  my  life.  He  said,  neither  had  he,  but,  if  I  would  go,  he  would 
make  a  couple  of  cradles.  I  agreed  to  do  so.  Fellows  was  a 
regular  Yankee,  who  could  make  any  thing,  from  a  German  flute 
down  to  a  penny  whistle,  and  make  it  well,  too.  There  were  no 
cradles  in  the  country,  all  the  grain  being  cut  with  sickles.  The 
6 


122 


ADVENTURES     OF     CAPTAIN     IIEUSTIS. 


cradles  being  completed,  we  travelled  twelve  miles,  and  then 
called  on  Mr.  Benton,  whose  estate  is  on  the  South  Esk  River, 
and  asked  him  if  he  wanted  his  grain  cra()led. 

"  Are  you  cradlers  ?  "  ' 

"  Yes ;  cradlers  in  our  own  country." 

"  Well,  I  should  like  to  try  the  experiment ;  if  it  works  well,  I 

will  in  future  have  all  my  grain  cradled.     I  will  give  you  ten 

'  shillings  an  acre  and  board  you,  which  is  the  same  I  give  reap- 

-j  ers ;  and  if  you  do  it  satisfactorily,  I  will  give  you  a  pound  (five 

dollars)  extra." 

We  told  Mr.  Benton  we  were  experienced  cradlers,  because 
an  Englishman  always  thinks  a  man  must  needs  be  a  bungler, 
unless  he  has  served  an  apprenticeship  of  seven  years  at  his 
business,  let  it  be  ever  so  simple. 

Mr.  Benton  had  between  two  and  three  hundred  acres  of 
"  grain,  and  he  and  several  others  went  down  to  see  us  commence. 
Unaccustomed  as  we  were  to  the  work,  the  presence  of  so  many 
spectators —  including  our  employer,  whose  good  opinion  we  were 
anxious  to  secure,  at  the  outset — was  somewhat  embarrassing. 
When  we  first  struck  in,  as  a  matter  of  course,  our  skill  was  not 
exhibited  to  much  advantage.  I  at  once  complained  of  the 
cradles,  and  insisted  that  the  fingers  were  not  right,  and  that  we 
must  go  and  alter  them.  Off  we  went,  and  took  good  care  not 
to  go  back  until  Benton  and  his  friends  had  left  the  field.  We 
then  began  anew,  and  in  a  very  short  time  got  "  the  hang "  of 
the  cradles,  and  could  lay  the  grain  as  handsomely  as  the  very 
best  of  cradlers.  Mr.  Benton  was  so  well  satisfied  with  the 
manner  in  which  we  performed  the  work,  that  he  very  cheerfully 
paid  us  the  extra  pound. 

The  reapers  threatened  vengeance  against  us  and  our  cradles. 
We  had  to  lock  up  our  **  labor-saving  machines "  every  night, 
to  keep  them  out  of  the  hands  of  those  who  would  have  been 
glad  to  destroy  them.  Before  I  left  the  Island,  the  price  of 
cradling  was  down  to  three  shillings  an  acre,  not  one  third  as 
much  as  Mr.  Benton  paid  us.  By  this  job  of  cradling  we  earned 
^1^130,  which  was  the  first  and  only  money  we  accumulated  in 
the  colony,  and  we  expended  nearly  the  whole  of  it  in  the  pur- 
chase of  clothes,  of  which  we  were  in  very  great  need. 


:U 


'1 


J'  ii- 1 J 1..-  ( 


^   v,J   ^ 


<,.t 


r. 


u  1 


*.M.'--V  " 


f;s,  and  then 
h  Esk  River, 


works  well,  I 

give  you  ten 

I  give  reap- 

a  pound  (five 

lers,  because 

be  a  bungler, 

years  at  his 

red  acres  of 
IS  commence. 
e  of  so  many 
nion  we  were 
mbarrassing. 
skill  was  not 
ained  of  the 
,  and  that  we 
rood  care  not 
le  field.  We 
he  hang"  of 
^  as  the  very 
lied  with  the 
jry  cheerfully 

I  our  cradles. 

every  night, 
Id  have  been 
the  price  of 

one  third  as 
ng  we  earned 
cumulated  in 
it  in  the  pur- 
ed.        ^n 


123 


!"   ■ 


CHAPTER  Xll. 


' '      .til      ')■;  •<    ).,  •    .r     '"''^ 


The  Author  visited  by  his  Brother — Hunting  Bush-Rangers — 
Dresser  and  Wright  pardoned — The  new  Governor — His 
Opinion  of  the  Legality  of  our  Imprisonment — A  Petition  for 
our  Pardon — Another  unsuccessful  Attempt  to  Abscond — 
Trial  before  a  Magistrate — Cheating  the  Laborer  of  his 
Wages — The  Pardon — Captain  Skinner,  of  the  PJuBnix. 

Toward  the  latter  part  of  February,  my  brother,  Charles 
P.  Ileustis,  arrived  at  Hobart  Town,  in  the  whale-ship  William 
Hamilton,  of  New  Bedford,  then  on  her  passage  to  the  Nortlv* 
west  Coast.  Captain  John  Cole,  the  commander  of  the  ship, 
had  been  a  townsman  and  schoolmate  of  mine.  My  brother 
came  up  to  Campbelltown  to  see  me,  and  the  captain  sent  a  let- 
ter, in  which  he  referred  to  our  school-boy  days,  and  also  sent 
word  that  if  I  were  aboard  his  ship,  he  would  put  me  where  the 
constables  of  Van  Dieman's  Land  would  never  find  me.  My 
brother  stopped  with  me  two  nights,  and  through  him  I  heard 
from  my  other  friends  in  America.  This,  and  one  letter,  which 
the  government  allowed  me  to  see  afler  they  had  broken  it  open, 
was  all  the  intelligence  I  received  from  my  friends,  during  the 
five  years  I  was  kept  on  the  Island.  Other  letters  were  sent, 
but  they  never  reached  me. 

I  knew  it  to  be  worse  than  useless  for  me  to  attempt  to  escape 
with  Captain  Cole,  as  I  was  very  closely  watched.  Indeed,  as 
soon  as  it  was  known,  at  Hobart  Town,  that  I  had  a  brother  on 
board  the  William  Hamilton,  a  messenger  was  despatched  to 
Campbelltown,  to  admonish  the  police  officers  to  keep  an  eye  on 
me.  I  sent  a  letter  by  my  brother,  which  he  forwarded  by  the 
first  vessel  he  fell  in  with  bound  to  the  United  States,  and  it  was 
received  by  the  person  to  whom  it  was  addressed.  I  wrote  sev- 
eral letters  home,  but  only  one  of  them,  beside  the  one  just  al- 
luded to,  were  received  here. 

After  the  job  of  cradling  was  finished.  Fellows,  Whiting,  and 
myself,  went  to  getting  out  shingles  again.  We  made  a  contract 
with  a  man  to  furnish  him  with  shingles  by  the  thousand.  The 
timber  was  cut  on  government  land,  for  which  we  had  to  pay 
twenty-five  cents  a  week  for  each  man  employed.     We  also  got 


124 


CAPTIVITY    AND    ADVUNTUnES    OF 


out  felloes,  for  wheels,  in  which  wc  successfully  competed  with 
the  sawyers,  and  thus  excited  their  enmity.  We  took  out  a 
license  to  cut  timber  for  ten  weeks,  and  paid  in  advance.  Four 
weeks  before  the  expiration  of  the  time,  the  government  required 
our  services  in  hunting  bush-rangers,  and  we  were  obliged  to 
abandon  our  work,  besides  being  defrauded  of  the  money  we  had 
paid  in  advance. 

Bush-rangers  are  convicts  who  have  escaped  into  the  forests 
and  mountains,  where  they  live  by  plunder  and  robbery,  and  be- 
come a  terror  to  the  whole  Island.  They  are  driven  to  this  mode 
of  life  by  the  severity  of  their  treatment.  High-spirited  and  res- 
olute men,  as  they  generally  are,  they  prefer  even  death  itself  to 
the  odious  tyranny  of  the  government  overseers.  They  flee  into 
the  unsettled  parts  of  the  country,  and  get  arms  and  ammunition 
from  the  shepnerds  who  are  watching  their  flocks  in  those  re- 
gions. They  generally  go  in  couples,  though  sometimes  ten  or 
twelve  are  together.  The  caves  of  the  mountains  afford  them 
hiding-places,  but  they  do  not  long  remain  in  the  same  locality. 
In  their  wanderings,  they  embrace  every  opportunity  to  plunder 
those  who  come  within  their  reach,  and  commit  murder  when- 
ever the  success  of  their  schemes  cannot  otherwise  be  secured. 

At  the  time  I  am  speaking  of,  two  of  these  bush-rangers, 
named  Jeffs  and  Conway,  had  committed  several  depredations 
on  property  in  the  vicinity  of  Campbelltown,  and  had  also  done 
violence  to  the  persons  of  some  of  the  inhabitants.  About  three 
hundred  men,  including  forty  of  the  Americans,  were  armed  and 
sent  out  from  the  Campbelltown  District,  in  search  of  these  fa- 
mous bush-rangers.  We  were  divided  off  into  parties  of  six  or 
seven,  each  man  armed  with  a  musket  and  five  rounds  of  ammu- 
nition, which  was  all  the  government  dared  to  allow  us,  lest  wc 
should  use  the  means  thus  placed  in  our  hands  to  regain  our  own 
liberty.  Each  party  was  headed  by  a  constable,  whose  orders 
were  in  all  cases  to  be  obeyed.  All  of  us  were  sworn  as  special 
constables,  and  the  time  of  our  service  was  entirely  at  the 
pleasure  of  the  government. 

We  v/ere  away  from  home,  at  the  time  we  were  called  into 
this  service,  and  had  no  opportunity  to  provide  ourselves  with  a 
change  of  linen.  The  party  that  I  went  w>-h  were  out  seventy- 
three  days,  during  which  time  I  never  nad  my  clothes  or  boots 
ofT.  We  slept  in  the  woods,  in  robes  made  of  opossum  skins. 
After  we  came  in,  we  were  again  sent  out,  and  remained  fifteen 
days.  Constantly  scouring  the  woods,  in  all  directions,  we  occa- 
sionally got  on  the  track  of  the  bush-rangers,  but  it  never  hap- 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.    HGUSTIS. 


125 


npeted  with 
took  out  a 
ince.  Four 
;nt  required 
obliged  to 
mey  we  had 

0  the  forests 
ry,  and  be- 
to  this  mode 
ted  and  res- 
ath  itself  to 
ley  flee  into 
ammunition 
in  those  re- 
imes  ten  or 
afford  them 
ime  locality. 
r  to  plunder 
urder  when- 
|e  secured, 
iish-ranffers, 
depredations 
d  also  done 
About  three 
i  armed  and 
of  these  fa- 
es  of  six  or 
Is  of  ammu- 
us,  lest  we 
ain  our  own 
hose  orders 
n  as  special 
rely  at   the 

called  into 
lives  with  a 
out  seventy- 
les  or  boots 
isum  skins, 
ined  fifteen 
IS,  we  occa- 

never  hap- 


pened  to  be  my  good  or  bad  luck  to  meet  them.  They  were 
eventually  taken  by  a  party  in  which  were  Aaron  Dresser  and 
Stephen  S.  Wright,  two  of  the  Prescott  prisoners.  The  reward 
for  this  service  was  a  free  pardon,  $166,66  in  money,  and  a 
passage  to  England,  for  every  man  of  the  party.  It  was  a  rainy 
day  on  which  the  capture  took  place,  and  the  powder  of  the 
bush-rangers  being  wet,  they  were  unable  to  make  any  resist- 
ance ;  had  it  been  otherwise,  a  bloody  fight  must  have  ensued. 
They  were  hung,  shortly  afterwards. 

On  the  3d  of  July,  we  were  called  out  again.  The  mail  had 
been  robbed,  on  the  Launceston  road,  by  three  desperate  bush- 
rangers, named  Cash,  Cavanagh,  and  Jones.  I  was  out  this 
time  about  seven  weeks.  Cavanagh  was  taken  by  a  party  of 
constables,  at  a  shepherd's  hut,  but  he  would  give  no  information 
of  the  others. 

Cash  was  taken  in  the  following  November,  at  Hobart  Town, 
where  he  had  gone  to  see  his  wife.  He  killed  a  constable  who 
attempted  to  arrest  him,  after  he  had  been  discovered.  Jones 
wns  captured  in  March,  near  Bridgewater,  fifteen  or  sixteen  miles 
from  Hobart  Town.  He  had  both  of  his  eyes  shot  out  in  the  en- 
counter with  his  captors. 

Cash  and  Cavanacrh  were  tried  and  sentenced  to  Norfolk 
Island  for  life.  Jones  was  executed.  During  his  confinement,  he 
lost  all  the  flesh  on  his  bones,  and  was  nothing  but  a  blind  skeleton 
when  they  hung  him.  Cash  was  the  leader  of  the  gang,  and  to 
his  other  crimes  had  added  that  of  murder.  Why  his  life  was 
spared  it  is  difficult  to  conceive,  unless  it  was  thought  that  his 
sentence  was  worse  than  death  ;  an  opinion  which  those  who 
have  experienced  the  "  tender  mercies"  of  Van  Dieman's  Land 
would  not  consider  very  irrational. 

I  think  it  was  in  August  that  Sir  John  Eardley  Eardley  Wil- 
inot  arrived  at  Hobart  Town,  to  take  the  place  of  Sir  John 
Franklin,  as  Governor  of  Van  Dieman's  Land. 

In  November,  he  attended  the  cattle-fair  at  Campbelltown, 
and  Mr.  Kermodc,  at  our  request,  spoke  to  the  new  Governor  in 
our  behalf,  urging  our  pardon.  In  reply  to  Mr.  Kermode's 
earnest  appeal,  the  Governor  said,  if  he  had  been  in  Sir  John 
Franklin's  place,  when  we  arrived,  he  should  not  have  recei  ed 
us,  as  tiie  documents,  on  the  authority  of  which  Captain  Wood 
had  brought  us  there,  conferred  no  power  on  the  Governor  to  de- 
tain us  on  the  Island.  He  intimated  that  the  "old  granny"  did 
not  know  his  duty,  or  he  would  have  discharged  us  as  soon  as  we 
landed.     This  opinion  was  fully  sustained  by  Mr.  MacDowall,  the 


126 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


all 


ablest  lawyer  on  the  Island,  who  examined  the  papers  that  ac- 
companied us,  and  told  L.  W.  Miller  that  there  was  not  a  scrap 
of  authority  for  detaining  us.  Such  being  the  admitted  state  of 
the  case,  it  would  seem  to  have  been  Governor  Wilmot's  duty  to 
let  the  captives  go  free.  If  there  was  originally  no  legal  precept 
for  holding  us  in  bondage,  the  fact  that  we  had  been  wrongfully 
and  illegally  deprived  of  our  liberty  for  several  years  could  cer- 
tainly confer  no  power  to  continue  the  wrong.  However,  as 
matters  then  stood,  he  said  he  could  do  nothing  but  use  his  in- 
fluence with  the  home  government,  which  he  would  cheerfully 
do.  He  wished  the  settlers  and  magistrates  who  had  known  us 
would  get  up  a  petition,  and,  after  signing  it  themselves,  forward 
it  to  him,  and  he  would  endorse  it,  and  then  transmit  it  to  Eng- 
land. He  thought  we  should  get  a  favorable  answer  in  nine  or 
ten  months. 

In  accordance  with  the  suggestion  of  the  Governor,  a  petition 
was  drawn  up,  and  signed  by  about  fifty  of  the  most  respectable 
and  influential  men  in  the  colony.  The  petition  and  signatures 
covered  several  sheets  of  paper,  as  each  man  who  signed  it  made 
a  separate  statement  of  what  he  knew  respecting  us,  before  he 
added  his  name.     It  was  forwarded  on  the  28th  of  March,  1844. 

We  had  not  the  fullest  confidence  in  the  success  of  this  eflbrt 
to  procure  our  release,  and  continued  to  watch  for  opportunities 
to  escape.  Just  about  the  time  the  petition  was  forwarded,  we 
heard  that  there  were  several  whale-ships  at  Hobart  Town,  and 
James  Pierce  and  myself  obtained  passes  to  go  there,  with  the 
view  of  making  an  arrangement  with  the  captains  to  take  twenty 
of  us  off.  We  had  consultations  with  the  officers  of  the  ships, 
and  they  all  manifested  a  readiness  to  help  us  escape  from 
slavery.  It  is  deemed  prudent  not  to  divulge  the  names  of  these 
generous-hearted  men,  as  they  may  hereafter  have  occasion  to 
visit  the  isiand.  1  had  two  offers  to  go  on  board  of  ships,  with  a 
good  prospect  of  escaping.  My  companion,  Pierce,  had  the 
same  offers  made  to  him.  We  declined  them,  because  we  were 
anxious  to  get  oui  comrades  away  also,  and  we  knew  that  our 
escape  would  only  cause  them  to  be  treated  with  increased  se- 
verity, and  their  movements  more  strictly  watched. 

We  finally  made  an  arrangement  with  a  captain  to  take  twenty 
of  us  away.  He  was  to  sail  along  the  coast,  round  the  Island, 
nearly  200  miles,  to  a  place  called  Wabs'  Boat  Harbor,  on  the 
east  side  of  Van  Dieman's  Land,  and  thirty  miles  from  any  set- 
tlement. He  was  to  be  at  this  point  on  a  certain  day,  in  the  af- 
ternoon.    Several   months  previous.  Garret  Hicks   and   Riley 


CAI»TAI:J     DANIEL     D.    IIEUSTIS. 


187 


Whitney  had  taken  a  farm,  about  five  miles  from  the  coast,  for 
the  purpose  of  maturing  this  plan  of  escape.  By  getting  passes, 
we  could  go  and  see  them ;  and  there  was  no  difficulty  in  bribing 
a  clerk  with  a  dollar,  and  getting  a  pass,  whenever  we  wanted 
one.  There  were  very  few  officers,  from  the  Governor  down- 
wards, who  could  not  be  bribed,  if  the  poor  prisoner  had  the 
means.  It  is  called  taking  "  tip,"  and  is  so  common  that  it  ex- 
cites no  astonishment,  even  when  those  who  are  considered 
respectable  are  the  transgressors.  The  courts  are  full  of  it,  and 
there  is  no  tribunal  where  its  influence  is  not  felt. 

Some  of  our  comrades  were  in  Campbelltown,  sixty  miles  from 
the  point  on  the  coast  where  we  expected  to  embark ;  some  in 
Hobart  Town,  more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles ;  some  in 
Oatland  District,  ninety  miles;  and  some  in  Swanport,  thirty 
miles.  We  had  to  notify  them,  and  then,  by  marches  that  would 
appear  altogether  incredible,  were  I  to  give  the  particulars,  we 
made  our  way  to  the  coast.  Hicks  and  Whitney  had  a  fine  lot 
of  potatoes,  which  they  had  cultivated  expressly  for  the  adven- 
ture in  which  we  had  engaged.  They  were  to  afford  us  subsist- 
ence on  board  the  ship.  We  dug  and  carried  on  our  backs,  a 
distance  of  five  miles,  more  than  two  tons  of  them. 

The  whale-ship  made  its  appearance,  at  the  point  designated, 
early  on  the  morning  of  the  day  agreed  upon.  The  captain 
came  ashore  with  two  boats.  There  were  only  three  of  our  men 
there,  the  other  seventeen  being  at  the  hut,  five  miles  distant, 
where  it  was  deemed  more  prudent  to  remain  until  the  time 
stipulated  for  the  ship  to  arrive,  which  was  in  the  afternoon. 
The  captain  said  he  would  lay  off  and  on  till  four  o'clock,  at 
which  time  all  the  men  were  to  be  on  the  spot.  How  our  hearts 
beat  in  view  of  speedy  deliverance  from  captivity  !  In  imagina- 
tion we  were  already  grasping  the  hands  of  our  friends,  in  our 
dear  native  land !  The  perils  of  the  sea  were  not  thought  of,  in 
those  moments  of  joyful  anticipation.  We  felt  willing  to  endure 
any  hardship  to  recover  our  freedom. 

The  captain  returned  to  his  ship,  and  put  out  to  sea.  He  had 
not  been  gone  more  than  an  hour,  when  an  armed  vessel,  in  the 
government  service,  nade  its  appearance  off  the  coast,  and  re- 
mained in  that  quarte  *  several  days.  Thus  were  our  hopes  again 
blasted !  The  whale-ship  occasionally  hove  in  sight,  for  many 
days,  but  the  presence  of  the  armed  vessel  prevented  us  from 
communicating  with  the  noble-hearted  captain,  to  whom  we  owe 
many  thanks  for  the  persevering  though  fruitless  efforts  he  made 
to  get  us  on  board  his  ship.  .     ,    ; .   ,, , 


128 


CAPTIVITY    AND    ADVENTrRKS    OP 


IS 


V/e  remained  on  the  coast  ten  days,  and  employed  most  of  the 
time  in  fishing  and  hunting.  After  we  had  been  there  about 
eight  days,  three  constables,  from  Swanport,  visited  us,  and  en- 
deavored to  elicit  some  information  as  to  our  designs.  We  iold 
them  we  were  merely  hunting  and  fishing,  and  they  discovered 
nothing  to  contradict  our  statement.  Two  days  after  the  consta- 
bles arrived,  we  were  summoned  to  appear  before  the  police 
magistrate,  at  Swanport,  charged  with  trying  to  ab-^'cond.  The 
witnesses  against  us  told  different  and  very  contradictory  stories. 
Some  said  the  vessel  which  had  been  seen  off  the  coast,  under 
very  suspicious  circumstances,  was  a  ship ;  others  said  she  was 
a  bark  ;  and  others  still  that  she  was  a  brig.  Different  witnesses 
testified  that  she  carried  English,  French,  nn(^  American  colors. 
The  magistrate  tried  to  have  us  make  a  staterii.^;nt  to  send  to  the 
Governor,  but  we  had  seen  too  much  of  that  kind  of  management, 
and  preferred  to  let  the  government  furnish  its  own  testimony. 
All  we  knew  about  it,  was  the  simple  fact  that  we  were  hunting 
and  fishing.  After  exhausting  all  hia  cunning,  in  unavailing  en- 
deavors to  get  some  sort  of  a  confession  out  of  us,  the  magistrate 
said,  that,  notwithstanding  there  were  strong  grounds  for  suspect- 
ing the  charge  to  be  true,  he  co^iUl  not  prove  it,  and  should 
therefore  discharge  us,  and  send  un  hack  to  our  respective  dis- 
tricts. He  sent  a  letter  by  me  to  the  magistrate  at  Campbell- 
town,  informing  him  of  what  had  transpired  on  the  coast,  and 
telling  him  to  watch  us  closely. 

After  my  return  to  Campbelltown,  I  took  a  job  of  fencing,  in 
company  with  Elizur  Stephens  and  Michael  Fraer.  We  made 
about  three  miles  of  brush  fence,  at  ten  cents  a  rod.  It  was  a 
long  job ;  we  worked  hard,  early  and  late,  boarded  ourselves,  and 
lived  cheap,  for  the  sake  of  saving  a  little,  and  after  all  never  got 
a  cent  for  our  work !  Our  employer  failed,  and  cheated  us  out 
of  the  whole.  Three  days  before  I  left  Van  Dieman^s  Land,  he 
was  hung  for  murder.     His  name  was  Mayo  Mix. 

The  fence  being  done,  I  was  again  called  upon  by  the  govern- 
ment to  go  out  in  pursuit  of  bush-rangers.  I  was  out  twelve 
weeks  at  this  time.  The  incidents  of  these  several  excursions 
into  the  woods,  and  mountains,  and  desert  places,  would  fill  a 
chapter,  if  I  had  space  to  detail  them. 

On  my  return,  Hiram  Loop,  Chauncey  Matthews,  and  myself 
took  another  job  of  fencing,  and  strained  every  nerve  to  make 
something  by  it.  It  was  a  heavy  log  fence.  Never  did  men 
voluntarily  work  harder,  and,  when  it  was  completed,  all  we  had 
left,  after  paying  for  our  board,  was  just  enough  to  get  each  of 


CAPTAIN     DAMHL     I».     IIKUSTI8. 


109 


US  a  pair  of  pantaloons,  and  provide  us  with  travelling  money  till 
we  could  find  other  employment.  '       , 

About  the  20th  of  October,  1S44,  we  received  intelligence, 
by  way  of  a  letter  from  Mr.  Everett,  the  American  Minister  at 
London,  to  Mr.  Hathaway,  our  Consul  at  Uobart  Town,  that 
thirty-seven  of  our  number  had  been  pardoned  by  the  Queen. 
My  name  was  on  the  list.  The  official  document  did  not  arrive 
until  some  time  afterwards,  and  the  government  minions  were  not 
n  little  chagrined  that  we  should  receive  notice  of  our  pardon  in 
this  informal  manner. 

On  the  25th  of  October,  Hiram  Loop,  James  Pierce,  and  my- 
self engaged  to  repair  a  dam  for  William  Gray,  Esq.,  twenty- 
two  miles  from  Campbelltown.  This  piece  of  work  lasted  us  till 
December,  and  proved  about  as  profitable  as  the  last.  Labor 
was  so  cheap  that  it  was  impossible  to  get  lucrative  contracts. 

Just  as  we  had  finished  Mr.  Gray's  dam,  official  intelligence  of 
my  pardon  reached  me  through  the  government  gazette.  Ob 
the  ist  of  January,  1845,  I  left  Campbelltown  for  IIobartTowi. 
As  soon  as  I  arrived  at  the  latter  place,  I  went  to  the  Coloniil 
Secretary's  office,  where  I  found  a  document,  written  on  parch- 
ment, of  which  tlie  following  is  a  copy: —  i 


I, 


"Van  Dieman's  Land. 
To  all  to  whom  these  presents  shall  come. 


Sir  John  Eardley  Eardley  Wilmot,  Baronet,  Lieutenant- 
Governor  of  the  Island  of  Van  Dieman's  Land,  and  its  De- 
pendencies, send  greeting :  — 
[l.  s.]  Whereas,  by  Her  Majesty's  royal  warrant,  under  the 
sign  manual,  bearing  date  at  Buckingham  Palace,  the  third  day 
of  June,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  forty-four,  counter- 
signed by  one  of  Her  Majesty's  Secretaries  of  State,  and  ad- 
dressed to  the  Lieutenant-Governor  of  the  Island  of  Van  Die- 
man's  Land  for  the  time  being.  Her  Majesty,  the  Queen,  was 
pleased,  in  consideration  of  some  circumstances  humbly  repre- 
sented to  her,  to  extend  her  grace  and  mercy  unto  Daniel  D. 
Heustis,  who  was  tried  at  a  Court-Martial  in  Upper  Canada,  and 
sentenced  to  death,  which  sentence  was  commuted  to  transporta- 
tion for  life,  and  to  grant  him  her  free  pardon  for  his  said  crime; 
now  know  ye,  that  I,  the  said  Sir  John  Eardley  Eardley  Wilmot, 
Baronet,  Lieutenant-Governor  of  the  Island  of  Van  Dieman's 
Land,  and  its  Dependencies,  have  received  Her  Majesty's  war- 
rant, and  do  hereby  certify  and  declare  that  the  said  Daniel  D. 
Heustis  hath,  and  ought  to  enjoy,  Her  Majesty's  free  pardon  for 
6* 


130 


ADVICNTIIIIKM    Ol'    ('Ai'TAIN     IIKVMTIH. 


the  laid  crime  whereof  he  wai  convicted  im  aforesaid.     And  I  do 
hereby  discharge  the  said  Daniel  D.  Heustis  from  all  custody  in 
respect  to  his  said  sentence  and  trnnsportation. 
In  testimony  whereof  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand,  and  caused 
the  seal  of  the  Island  of  Van  Dieman's  Land  to  be  here- 
unto affixed. 
Dated  at  Hobart  Town,  this  second  day  of  December,  in  the 
year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  forty-four. 

J.  EARDLEY  WILMOT. 
By  His  Excellency's  command, 
J.  E.  BicHENo,  Colonial  Secretary." 

I  concluded  to  remain  at  Hobart  Town,  that  I  might  secure  a 
passage  from  the  Colony  by  the  first  opportunity.  I  was  in 
destitute  circumstances,  15,000  miles  flroin  fiome,  and,  during  the 
last  five  years,  not  a  ship  had  left  tiio  Island,  bound  direct  to  the 
United  States. 

On  the  23d  of  January,  the  whnle-ship  Phcenix,  Captain  Skin- 
ner, of  Bridgeport,  Conn.,  anchored  in  the  harbor.  She  was 
boand  to  the  Northwest  Coast,  and  I  endeavored  to  persuade  the 
captain  to  take  a  few  of  us  to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  or  any  other 
place  where  we  could  get  a  paMsago  home.  He  refused  to  do 
any  thing  for  us,  and  I  soon  discovered  that  he  was  one  of  those 
men  who  never  trouble  themselves  about  performing  a  generous 
or  humane  action.  One  of  his  crew,  a  fine  young  man,  whose 
name  I  have  forgotten,  died  very  suddenly  while  in  port,  and  was 
buried  from  the  colonial  hospital.  Captain  Skinner  wanted  we 
should  assist  in  conveying  the  corpse  to  the  grave,  and  offered  to 
pay  us  for  it.  Eight  or  ten  of  us  bore  the  cofiin  about  a  mile,  to 
the  place  of  interment,  the  captain  following  us  in  a  carriage. 
After  the  body  had  been  deposited  in  the  earth,  the  captain  drove 
off  in  his  carriage,  without  so  much  as  thanking  us  for  our  ser- 
vices. We  cared  little  for  hii  money  or  his  thanks;  the  reflec- 
tion that  we  had  done  the  last  sad  offices  of  friendship  to  a  fellow 
countryman  was  all  the  reward  we  claimed.  Sailors  are  pro- 
verbial for  their  kindness  to  thi  unfortunate,  and  I  am  happy  to 
say,  that,  with  the  exception  of  Captain  Skinner,  we  always  found 
them  disposed  to  assist  us,  even  when  there  was  much  hazard  of 
getting  into  difficulty  as  the  consequence. 


-•r.  W 


i  y 


131 


1  '  ''f  ,  ■  ■   ■ 


.  •  I 


:      CHAPTER  XIII.  / 

Adieu  to  Van  Dicman's  Land— The  Whale-Ship  Steigtitz — 
The  Boston  Atlas  Extra— Death  of  a  Sailor— A  Ship  in 
Distress  —  Killing  Whales  —  Dinner  with  a  King  at  the 
Society  Islands — Arrival  at  Honolulu  —  Kind  Reception  — 
Departure  for  Calif  ornia  —  Arrival  at  Monterey.  ,        , 

On  the  26th  of  January,  the  whale-ship  Steiglitz,  Captain  Se- 
lah  Young,  also  from  Bridgeport,  put  into  Hobart  Town.  I  met 
the  captain  on  the  wharf,  immediately  after  he  landed.  There 
was  something  in  his  appearance  which  convinced  me,  at  first 
sight,  that  an  appeal  to  his  generosity  would  not  be  in  vain,  and 
1  was  not  deceived.  I  explained  to  him  our  unfortunate  and  des- 
titute situation,  and  he  accompanied  me  to  the  American  Con- 
sul's office.  After  listening  to  my  story,  he  said  that  his  accom- 
modations were  not  suitable  for  passengers;  but,  as  we  were 
anxious  to  get  away,  and  were  willing  to  take  such  fare  as  he 
could  oflfer,  he  would  agree  to  carry  as  many  men  as  we  could 
get  together  in  three  days,  which  was  as  long  as  he  could  remain 
in  port. 

Our  comrades  were  scattered  in  different  parts  of  the  Island, 
some  of  them  100  miles  distant.  John  Thomas,  Nelson  Griggs, 
and  myself  immediately  set  ourselves  at  work  in  collecting  to- 
gether those  who  had  been  pardoned,  and,  at  the  end  of  the  three 
days,  we  had  a  jovial  company  of  twenty-seven  on  board  the  ship. 
The  last  of  them  arrived  about  ten  o'clock  at  night  of  the  28th, 
and  I  had  the  pleasure  of  escorting  them  on  board. 

Captain  Young  took  us  on  his  own  responsibility,  and  person- 
ally incurred  all  the  expense,  that  the  owners  of  the  ship  might 
have  no  cause  of  complaint.  Those  of  us  who  belonged  east  of 
Buffalo,  being  twenty,  gave  him  a  bond,  by  which  we  jointly  and 
severally  agreed  to  pay  him  $30  for  each  man,  amounting  in  all 
to  $600,  after  our  arrival  in  the  United  States.  Those  belong- 
ing west  of  Buffalo,  in  Ohio  and  Michigan,  gave  another  bond, 
of  the  same  import.  Since  my  arrival  home,  measures  have  been 
taken  to  raise  this  money,  and  if  it  has  not  already  been  paid,  it 
is  believed  that  the  numerous  friends  of  the  unfortunate  exiles 
will  cheerfully  contribute  the  amount. 


133 


CAI'TIMTY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


SIB 

4 


mi 

m 


On  the  itiorning  of  the  29th  of  January,  1845,  the  ship  was 
got  underway,  and  proceeded  down  the  Derwent,  in  beautiful 
style.  How  different  were  my  feelings,  as  I  paced  the  deck,  from 
what  they  were  when  I  ascended  the  same  stream,  in  the  prison- 
ship  Buffalo,  five  years  before !  Then,  dark  forebodings  racked 
my  imagination.  Now,  instead  of  gloomy  despair,  mirth  and  joy 
beamed  in  every  face,  and  liberty's  bright  banner,  the  glorious 
stars  and  stripes,  flaunted  in  triumph  over  my  head.  My  in- 
most soul  danced  with  joy,  and  but  for  the  sad  reflection  that  so 
many  of  my  brave  comrades  still  pined  in  the  land  of  slavery, 
I  should  have  been  supremely  happy.  What  was  wealth  to  me  ? 
I  was  free  !  With  scarcely  a  penny  in  my  pocket,  I  felt  as  rich 
as  Crcesus !  British  tyranny  had  fastened  no  stain  upon  my  rep- 
utation, and  already  visions  of  home,  and  brighter  days,  were 
flitting  before  me,  and  I  was  buoyant  with  hope ! 

The  breeze  freshened,  and  onward  dashed  the  gallant  ship, 
leaving  a  wake  straight  as  an  arrow,  whitened  with  the  eddying 
foam  that  rolled  from  her  sides.  Houses  and  trees  soon  melted 
into  naked  outlines,  the  iron-bound  shore  became  levelled  with 
the  ocean,  and,  ere  the  sun  had  set.  Mount  Wellington  alone  was 
seen  towering  above  the  ocean.  I  gazed  upon  this  last  landmark 
of  misery's  abode  until  it  was  lost  in  the  darkness  of  night. 
Adieu,  detested  land  of  unmitigated  wretchedness ! 

Captain  Young  had  provided  amply  for  our  accommodation 
below.  The  half  deck  had  been  enlarged,  and  berths  were  con- 
structed on  each  side,  abaf\  the  mainmast,  for  our  sleeping  quar- 
ters. A  brief  description  of  the  ship  will  convey  some  idea  of  our 
situation,  and  also  tend  to  explain  our  future  movements.  Her 
upper  deck  was  flush,  with  a  hurricane  house  afl,  having  state- 
rooms on  each  side,  but  open  amidships.  Amidships,  abaft  the 
fore  hatchway, "her  try- works  were  located.  They  contained  two 
large  iron  pots,  under  which  were  furnaces,  facing  forward. 
Alongside  of  the  works  were  two  square  copper  coolers,  in 
which  the  oil  was  cooled  off,  preparatory  to  being  put  into  casks. 
Abafl  the  try-works,  the  decks  were  covered  with  sheathing,  to 
protect  them  from  the  edges  of  the  spades,  when  ti-e  blubber  was 
being  cut  up.  The  spare  boats  were  stowed  bottom  up,  on 
skeeds  over  head,  on  the  quarter-deck ;  and,  of  those  in  use,  three 
were  suspended  over  the  larboard  side,  and  one  over  the  star- 
board quarter.  This  last  was  the  captain's  boat ;  the  others  were 
headed  by  the  mates.  Below,  forward,  was  the  forecastle  in 
which  the  sailors  resided ;  abafl  the  mainmast  was  the  half  deck, 
the  home  of  the  boatsteerers,  coopers,  carpenterp,  blacksmith,  and 


11 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    HEUSTIS. 


133 


e  ship  was 
beautiful 
deck,  from 
the  prison- 
igs  racked 
■til  and  joy 
e  glorious 
My  in- 
ion  that  so 
of  slavery, 
Ith  to  me  ? 
elt  as  rich 
>n  my  rep- 
lays, were 

lant  ship, 
le  eddying 
on  melted 
elled  with 
alone  was 
landmark 
of  night. 

I'modation 
were  con- 
)ing  quar- 
dea  of  our 
nts.     Her 
ing  state- 
abaft  the 
ained  two 
forward, 
aolers,  in 
nto  casks, 
ithing,  to 
ibber  was 
a  up,  on 
use, three 
the  star- 
hers  were 
castle  in 
alf  deck, 
fnith,  and 


other  petty  officers.  In  this  division  of  the  ship  we  were  located. 
The  captain,  his  three  mates,  and  the  steward,  lived  in  the  cabin. 
The  ship's  complement  of  men  and  boys  numbered,  in  ail,  about 
thirty  souls,  but  she  was  several  hands  short. 

The  space  before  the  mainmast,  across  in  the  wake  of  the 
main  hatchway,  was  the  blubber-room.  Here  the  blubber,  as 
taken  from  the  whales,  was  hove  in,  leaned,  and  cut  up  into 
horse  pieces.  The  other  parts  of  the  between-decks  contained 
provisions,  stores,  &c.,  and  the  lower  hold  was  filled  with  casks 
and  shooks. 

The  Steiglitz  was  a  fine  ship,  of  390  tons  register,  and  hailed 
from  Bridgeport,  Connecticut.  Originally,  like  most  of  our 
whalers,  she  had  been  a  merchant  ship,  and  as  such  was  exten- 
sively known  as  a  very  fast  sailer.  Connected  with  her  reputa- 
tion as  a  fast  sailer,  an  incident  occurred  some  years  ago,  which 
created  considerable  excitement  at  the  time.  The  Boston  Atlas, 
under  the  editorial  management  of  the  late  Richard  Haughton, 
a  man  of  the  most  indomitable  energy,  had  acquired  an  enviable 
reputation  for  obtaining  important  intelligence  in  advance  of  all 
the  other  papers,  and  also  had  the  credit,  at  least  among  its  po- 
litical opponents,  of  manufacturing  pretty  large  stories  to  in- 
fluence the  elections.  Some  wags  attached  to  a  rival  establish- 
ment, for  the  purpose  of  enjoying  a  little  fun  at  the  expense  of 
the  Atlas,  fabricated  some  exclusive  intelligence  for  it.  The 
ship  Steiglitz  was  supposed  to  be  on  her  passage  from  Liverpool, 
bound  for  Boston,  and  her  arrival  was  announced  in  flaming  cap- 
itals, in  an  extra,  purporting  to  be  issued  from  the  Atlas  office. 
The  European  intelligence  by  the  previous  arrivals  was  carried 
down  to  the  time  of  the  sailing  of  the  Steiglitz,  with  considera- 
ble ingenuity.  The  predictions  of  excited  politicians,  in  relation 
to  the  troubled  state  of  Europe,  were  fulfilled  by  this  intelli- 
gence, and  war,  if  not  actually  declared,  was,  nevertheless,  inev- 
itable. The  reports  of  the  markets  were  also  carefully  made  up, 
to  correspond  with  the  dolesome  state  of  the  times,  and  this  in- 
telligence, credited  to  the  Boston  Atlas,  was  extensively  circula- 
ted and  republished  in  all  parts  of  the  country.  The  extra  was 
issued  on  Saturday  afternoon,  and  sent  off  in  the  mails,  so  that 
no  exposure  of  the  tripk  would  follow  before  Monday.  In  the 
evening,  the  city  was  flooded  with  the  extras.  The  next  morn- 
ing, when  the  merchants  visited  Topliff's  Reading  Room,  the 
stirring  news  brought  by  the  Steiglitz  soon  became  the  theme  of 
speculation.  Numbers  went  to  the  office  of  the  Atlas,  to  see  the 
foreign  papers  ^ora  which  its  extra  had  been  compiled,  when,  of 


lii^i 


CAI'TIVITV     AND     ADVJINTLIIES     OF 


SO 


discovered.     But  the  excitement  was 
of  the  Atlas  actualiy  issued  nil  extra,  ex 


course,  the  hoax  was 
great,  that  the  editor 

posing  the  fraud,  and  offering  a  reward  for  the  detection  of  those 
who  had  perpetrated  it.  For  years  afterward,  when  any  impor- 
tant foreign  news  appeared  in  an  extra,  the  question  was  invii- 
riably  asked  :  "  Is  it  by  the  fast-sailing  ship  Steiglitz?" 

But  let  us  return  to  a  description  of  our  voyage.  In  the  morn- 
ing, at  daylight,  one  of  the  mates  and  a  foremast  hand  went  to 
the  fore  topgallant-masthead,  a  boatsteerer  to  the  main,  and  one 
of  the  green  hands  to  the  mizen,  to  look  out  for  whales.  The 
officer  generally  remained  four  hours  alofl,  but  the  others  were 
relieved  every  two  hours  regularly. 

Our  captain  was  a  noble-hearted  sailor,  and  those  under  his 
command  were  cheerful  and  active  in  the  discharge  of  their  duty. 
When  we  had  been  four  days  at  sea,  a  gale  sprang  up,  which 
blew  with  great  fury,  and  created  a  tremendous  cross-sea.  In 
securing  some  of  the  casks  on  deck,  with  extra  lashings,  one  of 
them  unfortunately  broke  loose,  and,  as  it  bounded  to  leeward, 
knocked  a  Portuguese  sailor  against  the  bulwarks,  and  crushed 
him  io  death.  This  sad  accident  threw  a  damper  upon  the  sports 
of  the  crew,  and  for  several  days  the  merits  of  the  deceased 
formed  the  subject  of  their  yarns.  Every  old  salt  who  had  wit- 
nessed a  death  at  sea,  had  to  relate  how  it  happened,  and  what 
were  the  good  qualities  of  the  deceased,  for  sailors  remember 
only  the  virtues  of  the  dead,  and  esteem  it  a  presage  of  bad  luck 
to  speak  evil  of  the  departed. 

A  few  days  afterward,  a  ship  was  reported  from  the  mast-head, 
and,  as  we  neared  her,  she  threw  out  the  American  ensign, 
union  down,  as  a  signal  of  distress.  We  boarded  her,  and 
learned  that  her  captain,  whose  name  was  Collins,  (the  ship's 
name  has  escaped  my  memory,)  had  died  h  few  days  previous, 
and  that  the  crew  refused  to  prosecute  the  voyage,  and  insisted 
upon  going  into  port  or  else  returning  home,  although  the  ship 
was  just  out,  and  almost  empty.  Captain  Young  mildly  repre- 
sented to  them  the  unreasonableness  of  their  conduct,  and  urged 
them  to  return  to  their  duty  like  men,  and  fill  the  ship,  as  the 
best  and  surest  way  to  reach  home,  and  be  rewarded  for  their  la- 
bors. His  advice  was  taken,  the  sailors  returned  to  their  duty, 
and  the  ships  filled  away,  and  were  soon  out  of  sight  of  each 
other. 

We  continued  cruising,  at  the  same  time  shaping  our  course 
for  the  Society  Islands,  but  for  weeks  no  whales  crossed  our  ho- 
rizon.    The  ocean,  however,  was  alive  with  fish ;    and  squid, 


CAPTAIN     DAMKL     I>.    IIKl'STIH. 


Kio 


whales'  food,  was  passed  iii  abundniice.  "  Keep  a  sharp  look- 
out there,  at  the  mast-heads,"  our  anxious  captain  sung  out  more 
or  less  every  day,  as  he  walked  the  (]uarter-deck,  and  "  Ay,  ay, 
sir,"  would  be  the  answer  from  alotl.  In  the  mean  time,  the 
ship's  company  were  employed  repairing  sails,  fitting  spare 
whaling  crafl,  coopering,  tinkering,  &.c.  The  watch  on  deck 
always  had  something  to  do,  while  the  watch  hclow  were  lei': 
masters  of  their  own  time.  Some  of  the  lazy  oner:  would  sleep; 
others  would  read,  mend  or  make  clothes,  scrimshank  whale- 
bone into  canes,  busks,  or  ornaments,  for  their  friends  ashore. 
The  last  dog-watch,  between  six  and  eight  o'clock,  was  the 
season  for  sport.  Then,  all  hands,  in  line  weather,  generally 
came  on  deck,  and  sung  songs,  spun  yarns,  danced  or  frolicked, 
until  the  first  watch  was  set.  We  were  treated  with  great  kind- 
ness by  the  crew,  and  often  participated  in  their  evening  sports. 

One  afternoon,  while  the  ship  was  dodging  along,  close-hauled 
on  the  larboard  tack,  under  double-reefed  topsails,  foresail,  jib, 
and  spanker,  a  heavy  cross-sea  running  at  the  time,  the  look-out 
at  the  main,  in  a  clear  voice,  drawn  out  to  the  last  note  of  his 
breath,  sung  out,  "  Thar  she  blows."  The  first  sound  gave 
warning  of  what  would  follow,  and  before  the  **  blows  "  had  died 
away,  all  hands  were  on  deck,  but  so  quiet  in  their  movements, 
that  not  a  sound  arose  to  mar  the  music  from  the  mast-head. 
Captain  Young  had  his  hand  upon  the  foremost  swifler  of  the 
main  rigging,  ready  for  a  spring  alofl,  and  the  men,  with  up- 
turned faces,  were  distributed  over  the  deck,  ready  to  obey  or- 
ders. "  Where  away?"  in  response,  demanded  the  captain,  in  a 
quick  and  stirring  tone,  when  the  mast-head  man  had  finished 
his  long-drawn  song.  "  Two  miles  and  a  half  oflf  to  leeward, 
about  three  points  abaft  the  beam,  sir,"  was  the  reply.  "  Thar 
again,"  continued  the  look-out,  "  there's  two  of  them,  sir,  sperm 
whales,  by  G — !"  "Thar  again,"  and  "thar  again,"  was  con- 
tinued, from  all  three  mast-heads,  at  intervals  of  thirty  or  forty 
seconds,  the  time  between  the  spouting  or  blowing  of  the  whales. 
The  sperm  whale  is  more  uniform  in  its  blowing  than  any  other 
whale,  and  its  spout  also  differs  in  appearance.  It  ascends 
obliquely,  and  resolves  into  a  bushy,  smoke-like  spray,  und  soon 
disappears,  while  the  right  whale  and  finback  blow  perpendicu- 
larly to  a  great  height,  and  their  spouting  continues  visible  sev- 
eral seconds  longer  than  that  of  the  sperm  whale.  "  Thar  goes 
flukes,  thar  goes  flukes,"  continued  the  lcx>k-outs,  "  headed  to 
windward,  sir ;  looks  like  a  cow  and  a  calf."  "  Note  the  time, 
on  deck,"  shouted  the  captain,  who  was  now  aloft  himself,  "  and 


136 


CAPTIVITY     AND    ADVENTURES     OF 


:  h 


loose  the  mainsail  and  set  it."  Sperm  whales,  when  making  a 
passage,  are  generally  very  regular  in  the  time  they  remain  down, 
which  is  longer  or  shorter,  according  to  their  size.  A  large 
whale  will  slop  down  from  twenty  minutes  to  half  an  hour,  and  a 
school  whale  about  fifteen  minutes;  but,  if  feeding,  or  playing 
round,  they  are  irregular  in  their  movements.  When  the  mast- 
head men  sung  out,  "  thar  goes  flukes,"  the  whales  had  gone  be- 
low, and  the  subsequent  order  to  **  note  the  time,"  was  given 
with  a  view  to  know  when  they  might  be  expected  up  again. 

The  mainsail  was  set,  the  ship  hove  about  on  the  starboard 
tack,  the  bocits  swayed  up,  and  every  thing  got  in  readiness  for 
lowering.  "  Black  skin,  on  the  lee  bow;  thar  she  blows,"  was 
sung  out  from  aloft.  **  Thar  again,"  and  "  thar  again,"  was 
continued  during  another  rising,  and  by  this  time  the  ship  had 
reached  far  enough  ahead  to  bring  the  whales  on  the  lee  beam. 
"  Haul  the  mainsail  up,  ease  away  the  jib  sheet,  back  the  main- 
topsail,  and  let  her  come  to  the  wind,  gently,"  were  orders  given 
by  the  captain,  and  quickly  obeyed  without  confusion,  or  unneces- 
sary noise.  The  whales  were  now  about  a  mile  and  a  hiilf  dead 
to  leeward,  heading  right  for  the  ship,  but  moving  very  slowly. 
When  the  ship's  way  had  been  deadened,  the  three  larboard  boats 
were  lowered ;  but,  before  they  had  got  many  yards  from  the 
ship,  the  whales  had  gone  down  again.  Each  boat  contained  six 
men,  five  of  whom  pulled,  and  one  steered.  The  headsman  of  a 
whale-boat  is  generally  one  of  the  mates  or  captain,  and,  when 
leav  ig  the  ship  in  pursuit  of  whales,  he  steers  the  boat,  and  the 
boatsteerer,  so  called,  pulls  the  bow  oar,  until  near  the  whale, 
when,  in  obedience  to  the  orders  of  the  officer  afl,  he  peaks  his 
oar,  and  fastens,  afler  which  he  shifts  afl  and  steers  the  boat, 
while  the  officer  goes  forward  and  lances  the  whale. 

In  a  whale-boat,  there  are  two  tubs  of  lines,  placed  so  as  to 
ballast  the  boat  properly  for  pulling.  To  one  end  of  the  line,  an 
iron  or  harpoon  is  bent,  and  around  the  line  another  rope,  with 
a  running  eye  in  it,  is  fastened  to  a  second  iron.  Both  of  the  har- 
poons are  placed  in  a  crutch,  which  is  inserted  in  the  foremost 
row-lock;  having  their  poles  (for  they  are  socketed  with  heavy 
hard-wood  poles)  resting  in  such  positions  as  to  be  seized  readily, 
and  darted  without  confusion.  Six  or  seven  fathoms  of  line  for 
each  harpoon  is  coiled  into  the  bow  or  box  of  the  boat,  and  the 
bight  of  the  line,  leading  from  the  bow  over  the  oars,  is  passed 
over  a  loggerhead  afl,  within  control  of  the  boatsteerer. 

The  boats  pulled  about  a  mile  apart,  thus  spreading  the 
chance  to  pounce  upon  the  whales  when  they  should  appear, 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL     1>.    IIETJSTIS. 


137 


making  a 
ain  down, 
A  large 
nur,  and  a 
>r  playing 
the  mast- 
l  gone  be- 
kvas  given 
igain. 
starboard 
diness  for 


M 


nws,"  was 
ain,"  was 
ship  had 
lee  beam, 
the  maiii- 
lers  given 
'  unneces- 
half  dead 
ry  slowly. 
>ard  boats 
from  the 
tained  six 
man  of  a 
nd,  when 
I  and  the 
le  whale, 
>eaks  his 
he  boat, 

so  as  to 
line,  an 
pe,  with 
the  har- 
bremost 
]  heavy 
readily, 
line  for 
and  the 
passed 

ing  the 
appear, 


and  the  ship  had  again  filled  away,  and  made  sail  upon  a  wind. 
The  calf  broke  water  first,  almost  under  the  bow  of  the  mate's 
boat,  and,  in  an  instant,  the  boatsteerer's  oar  was  peaked,  and 
with  the  harpoon  poised,  ready  for  darting,  he  only  wanted  to  be 
a  few  yards  nearer  to  dart.  He  beckoned  with  the  left  hand  to 
lay  the  boat  on  toward  the  young  whale,  which  was  now  coming 
right  for  the  boat,  head  on.  Another  stroke  of  the  oars,  and  u 
sudden  sweep  with  the  steer  oar,  brought  the  boat  almost  square 
off  and  on  to  the  whale ;  the  boat  was  stopped,  and  both  irons 
flew  with  well-directed  vigor,  but,  ere  they  reached  their  aim,  the 
cow  whale  broke  water  between  them  and  her  calf,  and  received 
both  irons,  abaft  the  hump.  She  fairly  breached  out  of  water, 
and  covered  the  boat  so  entirely  in  a  column  of  spray,  as  for  sev- 
eral seconds  to  shroud  her  from  view.  "  Stern  hard,  my  boys," 
shouted  the  mate,  who  had  now  assumed  his  station  forward, 
"  so,  stoppa,  slack  line."  The  whale  had  now  taken  to  wind- 
ward, throwing  her  head  out  of  water,  darting  along  at  her  ut- 
most speed,  blowing  like  a  high-pressure  steam-engine,  and 
making  the  water  fly  over  the  boat,  in  whitened  foam.  Her  calf 
kf.  t  close  alongside  of  her,  blowing  and  breaching  about,  as  if 
conscious  that  all  was  not  well  with  its  mother.  The  sea  was 
very  rough,  and  the  boat  had  to  be  managed  with  great  caution, 
especially  when  the  whale  took  a  sudden  turn,  stopped  short,  or 
went  down.  Far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  the  other  boats  were 
seen  dead  to  leeward,  pulling  for  dear  life,  in  the  oily  wake,  to 
reach  the  whale,  for  it  was  well  known  that  if  any  more  whales 
were  in  the  vicinity,  they  would  be  sure  to  make  for  the  wounded 
one.  Having  wearied  herself  with  running  to  windward,  the 
whale  hove  to,  and  began  rolling  over  and  over,  thrashing  the 
water  with  her  flukes,  and  breaching.  *'  Haul  in  slack-line,  my 
lads,"  cried  the  mate ;  "  pull,  and  Fll  kill  her  dead  with  a  lance ; 
pull,  lay  on;  there,  now  —  stoppa;  stern  hard;  stern,  or  you'll 
get  knocked  into  niinced-meat;  that'll  do,"  as  he  withdrew  the 
lance  from  her  vitals ;  "  now,  my  lads,"  resumed  he,  "  look  out ; 
she  is  in  her  flurry ;  mind  your  oars."  Circling  round,  in  the 
agonies  of  death,  spouting  thick  blood,  and  accompanied  by  her 
calf,  she  continued  running  about  ten  minutes,  then  rolled  fin 
out,  turned  her  head  toward  the  sun,  and  blowed  her  last. 

When  the  other  boats  came  up,  they  lanced  and  killed  the 
calf,  and  then  both  were  towed  to  the  ship  together,  and  made 
fast  alongside.     It  was  now  dark.     The  boats  were  hoisted  up,i 
sail  shortened,  and  the  ship  hove  to  for  the  night.     As  the  ship 
was  short  of  hands,  several  of  our  men  went  in  the  boats,  and 


IP         3'| 


(  (if 


^m  ' 


' 


138 


ADVKNTUIIKH     01'     CAPTAIN     HKL'STIS. 


pulled  very  well,  consider iii(|[  the  roughness  of  the  sea,  nnd  theii 
inexperience  in  the  husincHH. 

The  cutting-in  purchases,  which  consist  of  two  large  tackles, 
from  the  mnininnHt-head,  were  rove  during  the  night,  and  the 
next  morning,  at  daylight,  we  commenced  cutting  in.  The  cow 
whale  wan  n  large  one,  being  over  forty  feet  in  length.  A  sperm 
whale's  head  is  square  at  the  en<l,  and  is  said  to  be  one  third  as 
large  as  the  body  ;  the  spout-hole  is  at  the  extreme  of  the  head ; 
the  eyes  are  small,  and  far  back  in  the  head,  near  the  body  ;  the 
jaw  is  small,  and  is  furnished  with  ivory  teeth,  with  indentations 
in  the  upper  part  of  the  mouth  to  receive  them;  the  fins,  of  which 
there  are  two,  are  small,  nnd  are  abaft  the  eyes;  next  comes  the 
hump,  which  presents  a  broken  outline  along  the  back  down  ti) 
the  smallest  part  before  the  tail  or  flukes ;  the  flukes  are  hori- 
zontal, not  vertical,  with  a  small  slit  in  the  middle,  and  are  very 
hard ;  the  skin  is  generally  black,  excepting  about  the  belly  and 
under  the  fins,  which  is  a  light  slate  color.  The  blubber  on  a 
whole  bears  about  the  same  proportion  to  the  whole  as  the  fat  of 
a  pig  to  its  bod^.  In  cutting  up,  the  head  is  divided  into  two 
parts,  termed  junk  and  cane,  the  former  consisting  of  fine  fat 
blubber,  and  the  other  containing  oil,  or  fat,  so  tender  that  it  can 
be  squeezed  into  liquid,  by  hand.  The  entire  head  of  a  small 
whale  can  be  hove  in  on  deck,  hut  with  a  large  whale  it  is  neces- 
sary to  cut  the  junk  from  the  case,  and  then  to  heave  the  latter 
into  such  a  position  that  its  contents  can  be  bailed  out  with 
buckets. 

For  cutting  in,  the  whale  is  made  fast  alongside,  with  the 
flukes  forward  and  the  head  aft,  nearly  opposite  the  main  chan- 
nel on  the  starboard  side.  Before  the  gangway  there  is  a  stage 
over  the  side,  upon  which  the  second  mate  stands,  secured  round 
the  waist  with  a  belt,  and  abaft  the  gangway  there  is  another 
stage,  for  the  chief  mate.  The  blubber  spade  is  ground  nnd  oil- 
Btoned  as  sharp  as  a  razor,  and  has  a  blade  about  six  inches  wide, 
which  gradually  decreases  and  forms  a  socket,  into  which  a  long 
pole  is  secured.  There  is  also  a  circular  spade,  used  for  cutting 
round  holes,  for  inserting  a  hook  or  strap,  as  the  blubber  is  not 
BO  liable  to  tear  when  cut  round,  as  it  is  when  cut  square.  The 
first  hole  cut  is  close  abail  the  head,  and  into  it  a  large  hook  is 
inserted  by  one  of  the  boatsteerers,  who  sits  upon  the  whale  for 
that  purpose.  This  duty  is  termed  his  hook  on^  and  is  performed 
in  turns.  When  the  hook  is  inserted,  the  fall  of  the  tackle  oi 
purchase  attached  to  it  is  brought  around  the  windlass  forward, 
and  then  hove  taut.    Then  a  strip  about  four  feet  wide  is  marked, 


^ 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    HEUSTIS. 


139 


and  theii 

i  tackles, 

and  the 

The  cow 

A  sperm 

i  third  as 

he  head ; 

ody  ;  the 

entations 

of  wiiich 

monies  the 

down  to 

are  hori- 

l  are  very 

belly  and 

jber  on  a 

the  fiit  of 

into  two 

f  fine  fut 

hat  it  can 

of  a  small 

t  is  neces- 

the  latter 

out  with 

with  the 
lain  chnn- 
is  a  stage 
red  round 
is  another 
d  and  oil- 
ches  wide, 
ich  a  long 
or  cutting 
ber  is  not 
are.  The 
e  hook  is 

whale  for 
performed 

tackle  ot 
s  forward, 
is  marked, 


the  forward  part  of  which  is  cut  by  the  second  mate,  and  the 
after  part  by  the  chief  mate,  who,  also,  as  the  windlass  raises  the 
blubber,  and  gives  the  whale  a  rolling  motion,  cuts  off  the  head. 
When  the  blubber  is  hove  as  high  as  the  blocks  will  admit,  a  hole 
is  cut  in  it,  close  to  the  gangway,  and  into  this  hole  the  strap  of 
the  other  purchase  is  inserted  and  secured  with  a  toggle,  (a  large 
piece  of  wood,)  and  is  hove  taut.  This  done,  the  blubber  is  cut 
square  off —  now  termed  a  blanket-piece  —  and  lowered  down 
the  main  hatchway  into  the  blubber-room.  In  this  way  the 
whale  is  turned  round  and  round,  until  the  whole  of  its  blubber 
is  stripped  off,  and  the  head  and  flukes  severed  from  the  body, 
which  is  then  termed  a  carcass,  and  cut  adrift.  In  the  blubber- 
room  the  lean  is  carefully  taken  off  with  knives,  and  then  the 
blubber  is  cut  up  into  oblong  pieces,  called  horse-pieces,  which 
are  laid  on  a  horse  of  wood,  projecting  from  the  windlass,  with 
stout  pegs  on  each  side  to  prevent  its  rolling  off,  and  a  boy  with 
a  small  iron  hook,  called  a  gaff,  holds  on  to  one  end  of  it,  while  the 
horse-man,  with  a  two-handed  knife,  minces  it  up.  It  is  then 
pitched  into  the  pots,  and  boiled  out.  The  scraps  which  remain 
become  fuel,  and  are  used  in  the  furnaces.  When  the  pots  are 
full,  the  clear  oil  is  bailed  out  into  copper  coolers,  and,  when 
properly  cooled,  is  stowed  away  in  casks  below,  with  great  care, 
by  the  chief  mate  and  the  boatsteerers.  Sometimes,  when  only 
a  small  whale  is  taken,  its  blubber  is  cut  up  on  deck,  which,  as 
I  have  before  stated,  is  covered  with  sheathing  for  that  purpose. 
The  heads,  too,  are  always  cut  up  on  deck.  The  cow  and  calf 
stowed  down  about  forty-five  barrels  of  oil. 

Such  is  whaling,  as  it  appeared  to  me  on  board  the  Steiglitz, 
and  as  I  learned  it  from  those  who  had  witnessed  many  scenes 
of  the  kind.  It  is  a  hard  and  perilous  business,  in  which  none 
but  men  of  strong  arms  and  lion  hearts  are  suitable  to  engage. 
There  is  much  about  it  that  is  disagreeable,  and  yet  there  are 
thousands  who  have  become  so  much  attached  to  this  rugged 
mode  of  life,  that  they  can  hardly  be  persuaded  to  abandon  it, 
even  in  their  old  age.  After  having  been  rocked  for  years  on  the 
rolling  deep,  in  perils  oft,  amid  tempestuous  storms,  and  in  haz- 
ardous and  exciting  encounters  with  the  objects  of  their  pursuit, 
they  feel  that  life  on  shore  is  dull  and  tiresome. 

The  first  place  we  touched  at  was  Oheteroa,  one  of  the  So- 
ciety Islands,  where  Nelson  Griggs  and  myself  went  ashore  with 
the  captain,  and  dined  with  the  king,  the  young  princesses  vol- 
unteering to  keep  off  the  flies,  by  waving  cocoa  leaves  over  our 
heads.     The  dinner  was  served  up  in  pretty  good  style.     We 


140 


CAPTIVITY     AND    ADVENTURES     OP 


4 


had  baked  chickens,  fish,  and  bananas,  with  a  good  cup  of  tea 
Various  kinds  of  fruit  were  also  on  the  table.  We  spent  the  day 
with  the  king,  and  Captain  Young  bought  oranges,  lemons,  ba- 
nanas, plantains,  cocoa-nuts,  &c.,  of  the  natives,  for  the  ship's 
company.  The  king  kept  a  book,  in  which  the  captains  of  ships 
recorded  their  names,  the  date  of  their  visit  to  the  Island,  and 
where  bound,  with  such  other  facts  as  might  be  useful  to  those 
who  came  afterward.  In  looking  over  this  record,  Captain  Young 
ascertained  that  his  brother  had  been  there  two  years  before. 

The  next  place  we  visited  was  Otaheite,  another  of  the  Society 
Islands.  We  found  this  Island  under  martial  law,  in  conse- 
quence of  a  difHculty  between  the  French  and  English.  We 
were  not  allowed  to  go  ashore  until  we  had  reported  ourselves  on 
board  the  French  man-of-war  which  was  lying  in  the  harbor. 
Not  finding  any  vessel  here  bound  to  the  United  States,  we  again 
set  sail  for  the  Sandwich  Islands,  where  we  arrived  on  the  29th 
of  April,  and  put  into  Honolulu,  afler  a  passage  of  ninety  days 
from  Hobart  Town. 

Captain  Young  interceded  with  the  king,  and  obtained  per- 
mission for  us  to  remain  there,  without  paying  the  sum  usually 
required.  The  king  said  he  would  grant  us  this  privilege,  on 
account  of  his  strong  friendship  toward  the  United  States.  To 
us,  this  favor  was  peculiarly  gratifying,  as  it  showed  that  our 
country  was  respected  in  these  distant  Islands. 

The  Steigiitz  remained  in  port  six  days,  and,  being  short  of 
hands,  seven  of  our  men  shipped  for  the  remainder  of  the  voy- 
age.    They  were  expected  to  arrive  home  in  the  spring  of  1847. 

The  morning  afler  we  arrived  at  Honolulu,  Captain  Brewer  — 
of  the  firm  of  Brewer  &  Marshall,  American  merchants  at  that 
place — called  to  see  us,  and  procured  us  a  boarding  place  for  a 
week,  at  his  own  expense,  to  give  us  an  opportunity  to  find  em- 
ployment, until  we  could  engage  a  passage  home.  Captain 
Brewer,  I  believe,  is  a  native  of  Boston ;  he  is  entitled  to  our 
warmest  thanks  for  his  generous  attentions. 

We  also  formed  an  acquaintance  with  Carter  &  Thompson, 
who  went  from  Charlestown,  Massachusetts,  and  were  keeping 
the  best  hotel  in  the  place.  They  interested  themselves  in  our 
behalf,  as  did  all  the  Americans  residing  there,  except  our  Con- 
sul, Mr.  Hooper,  who  treated  us  with  marked  coolness. 

Hiram  Grimes,  formerly  of  Boston,  and  of  the  firm  of  E.  &.  H. 
Grimes,  called  to  see  us.  He  wanted  me  to  go  to  California  to 
take  the  charge  of  a  ranciie,  or  farm,  twenty-one  miles  square, 
which  he  and  his  uncle  owned,  and  of  which  the  latter  had  the 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    HKUSTIS. 


141 


|up  of  tea 
!nt  the  day 
!mons,  ba- 
the ship's 
lis  of  ships 
iland,  and 
1  to  those 
ain  Young 
before, 
he  Society 
in  conse- 
lish.     We 
irselves  on 
le  harbor. 
,  we  again 
1  the  29th 
inety  days 

ained  per- 
im  usually 
ivilege,  on 
tates.  To 
I  that  our 

g  short  of 
>f  the  voy- 
g  of  1847. 
Brewer — 
Dts  at  that 
»lace  for  a 
0  find  em- 
Captain 
ed  to  our 

hompson, 
'  keeping 
^es  in  our 
our  Con- 

'E.&H. 

ifornia  to 

3  square, 

had  the 


superintendence.  It  was  situated  about  300  inilcs  north  of  Mon- 
terey, between  the  Sacramento  and  the  American  Fork  Rivers. 
On  this  farm  they  had  between  three  and  four  thou^^aiul  head  of 
cattle,  and  two  or  three  hundred  horses.  Indians  were  employed 
to  do  the  work,  and  I  was  wanted  for  an  overseer.  I  agreed  to 
go  for  one  year,  if  they  would  also  hire  John  Thomas.  This  con- 
dition was  complied  with,  and  the  bargain  concluded. 

On  the  7th  of  May,  having  stopped  at  Honolulu  eight  days,  we 
embarked  in  the  American  ship  Fama,  bound  for  California. 
Our  comrades  still  remaining  on  the  Island,  through  the  kind- 
ness of  Captain  Brewer  and  other  Americans,  had  found  such 
employment  as  would  enable  them  to  earn  a  living  until  they 
could  get  a  passage  home.  The  Fama  was  a  Boston  ship,  em- 
ployed in  the  trade  between  the  Sandwich  Islands  and  California. 
We  had  a  pleasant  voyage  of  eighteen  days,  and  arrived  at  Mon- 
terey on  the  25th. 

We  immediately  called  on  the  American  Consul,  Thomas  O. 
Larkin,  Esq.,  who  received  us  in  a  very  gentlemanly  manner, 
and  manifested  a  ready  disposition  to  serve  us.  Our  instructions 
being  to  remain  at  Monterey  until  we  heard  from  the  elder  Mr. 
Grimes,  on  the  ranclie,  Mr.  Larkin  directed  us  to  a  good  board- 
ing house,  where  we  patiently  waited  about  twenty  days,  at  the 
end  of  which  Mr.  Grimes  came  to  see  us.  He  informed  us  that 
he  had  hired  the  overseer  he  had  the  year  before,  and  should 
therefore  have  no  occasion  for  our  services.  He  said,  however, 
that  he  was  willing  to  do  what  was  right  by  us,  and  wished  us  to 
think  the  matter  over,  and  let  him  know  the  next  morning  how 
we  should  be  willing  to  compromise.  Finally,  we  told  him  if  he 
would  give  us  $100  each,  and  pay  our  bills  up  to  that  time,  we 
would  call  it  square.  He  paid  us  the  money  without  any  hesi- 
tation, and  thus  terminated  our  contract  with  Mr.  Grimes. 


■■»itt« 


t    . 

•  i;,  <■;   .,■■■< 


^'';5 


"  '•■{ 


^'■!h 


,  - •  ■•I.'  ..,,  ;  1  ,  . 


•It; 


( 


liKi 


14i.»* 


III 
■«'i   I 


:) 


i  ii 


I-.',     « 


1  I 


I 


CHAPTER   XIV. 


i  ,  ,1 


Preparations  to  cross  the  Rocky  Mountains  —  Commencement 
of  the  Journey — Incidtnts  on  the  Route — Arrival  at  Neuva 
Helvetia — Captain  Sutter — Further  Travels  —  Sickness  of 
the  Guide  —  Abandonment  of  the  Expedition  —  Extensive 
Travels  in  California — Description  of  the  Country  —  Its 
Agricultural  and  Commercial  Advantages  —  Voyage  to  Val- 
paraiso—  Return  Home  in  the  Ship  Edward  Everett. 

We  remained  in  Monterey  until  toward  the  last  of  June,  in 
the  hope  of  getting  a  passage  home.  At  that  time  we  fell  in 
with  William  Fellon,  a  trapper,  who  was  anxious  to  cross  the 
Rocky  Mountains  to  St.  Louis,  where  he  belonged.  He  had 
spent  twenty-two  years  in  the  mountains,  and  was  perfectly  ac- 
quainted with  the  route  across  them,  and  with  all  the  Indian 
tribes  that  inhabit  those  regions.  As  we  were  very  anxious  to 
get  home,  we  agreed  to  accompany  him,  and  immediately  com- 
menced making  the  preparations.  We  bought  six  horses  and 
four  mules,  with  a  suitable  equipment  of  saddles  and  pack-sad- 
dles. We  killed  three  cows,  and  dried  the  meat,  for  use  on  the 
way,  and  also  laid  in  a  stock  of  flour,  cofiee,  sugar,  6lc.  All 
these  things,  and  a  few  cooking  utensils,  were  packed  up  in  al- 
focuses,  or  large  leather  bags,  made  to  fit  on  the  backs  of  mules. 

On  the  evening  of  the  4th  of  July,  Mr.  Larkin,  the  American 
Consul,  gave  a  fandango,  or  ball,  in  honor  of  the  day,  at  which 
the  principal  citizens  of  the  place  were  in  attendance.  We  had 
a  fine  dance,  an  excellent  supper,  and  a  gay  and  happy  company. 
Every  thing  was  conducted  with  propriety,  and  in  good  taste. 
The  Spanish  ladies  made  an  elegant  appearance,  in  form,  dress, 
and  manners. 

On  the  9th  of  July,  dressed  in  regular  Rocky  Mountain  suits, 
made  of  deer-skins,  and  armed  with  rifles,  we  commenced  our 
travels.  Mr.  Fellon,  our  guide,  had  seven  horses,  and  three 
mules.     We  passed  Mission  St.  John,*  and,  the  second  night, 


*  These  Missions  were  settlements  formed  by  Catholic  priests,  and 
were,  at  one  time,  in  a  very  flourishing  temporal  condition,  carrying 
OQ  a  lucrative  trade  in  hides,  tallow,  and  other  articles,  with  vessels 


ADVENTURES     OF    CAPTAIN     IIHUSTIS. 


143 


of  June,  in 
i  we  fell  in 
to  cross  the 

d.  He  had 
berfectly  ac- 
[  the  Indian 
[y  anxious  to 
idiately  com- 
t  horses  and 
nd  pack-sad- 
T  use  on  the 
Eir,  &.C.  All 
ed  up  in  al< 
^ks  of  mules, 
le  American 
ay,  at  which 

e.  We  had 
py  company. 

good  taste, 
form,  dress, 

untain  suits, 
menced  our 
,  and  three 
scond  night, 


!  priests,  and 

iion,  carrying 

with  vessels 


rncamped  on  the  ranche  of  n  Spaniard,  named  Perchaqtier,  who 
has  tiic  greatest  herd  of  cattle  of  any  man  in  California,  at  the 
preprint  time.     He  has  20,000  head  of  horned  cattle. 

The  next  day  we  passed  Mission  St.  Hosea,  or  St.  Joseph. 
We  thjn  crossed  the  coast  range  of  mountains — on  which  we 
(Mcamped  several  nights  —  into  the  Tule  Plains,  on  the  San 
Joi^quin  River.  On  the  mountains,  we  passed  through  fields 
of  wild  oats,  more  than  a  hundred  miles  in  extent,  of  luxuriant 
growth,  being  more  than  three  feet  high.  The  elk,  the  deer,  the 
antelope,  and  other  wild  animals,  found  in  great  numbers  in  those 
regions,  feed  on  these  oats.  With  our  rifles  we  occasionally 
killed  these  animals,  and  made  several  hearty  meals  of  the 
roasted  meat. 

We  followed  the  course  of  the  San  Joaquin,  downward,  two 
or  three  days,  and  then  crossed  the  stream,  and  travelled  north, 
till  we  came  to  the  Casna  River,  on  the  banks  of  which  we  found 
an  English  settler,  William  Daly,  the  first  white  inhabitant  we 
saw  after  leaving  Perchaquer's,  a  distance  of  more  than  250  miles. 
During  the  journey,  we  had  been  obliged  to  keep  a  night-watch 
on  our  horses,  to  prevent  their  being  stolen  by  the  Indians,  whom 
we  encountered  almost  every  day.  We  tied  our  horses  with  a 
lasso,  six  or  seven  fathoms  long,  which  gave  them  a  chance  to 
feed,  while  we  took  turns  in  watching  them.  The  prairie  wolves 
would  sometimes  come  and  gnaw  off  the  lasso,  and  let  the  horses 
loose. 

We  stopped  at  Daly's  hut  a  few  days,  while  Fellon  went  over 
the  bay  to  Sanoma,  on  business.  While  stopping  there.  Captain 
Sutter,  at  Neuva  Plelvetia,  sixteen  miles  distant,  heard  of  us,  and 
sent  us  a  kind  invitation  to  call  upon  him,  which  I  accepted. 
Captain  Sutter  emigrated  to  this  country  several  years  ago,  from 
Missouri,  and  formed  the  first  settlement  in  the  valley  of  the  Sa- 
cramento, on  a  large  grant  of  land  which  he  obtained  from  the 


from  the  United  States  and  £ng]and,  and  buying  up  whole  cargoes  of 
goods  brought  from  tliosc  countries.  The  priestL.  had  a  high  reputation 
as  traders,  and  were  very  rich,  and  very  honest  in  their  dealings.  Their 
chief  merit  is  to  be  found,  liowever,  in  their  kind  treatment  of  the  In- 
dians, not  less  than  twenty-five  thousand  of  whom  were  living  under 
them,  as  laborers.  One  of  the  results  of  the  overthrow  of  the  Spanish 
dominion  in  Mexico,  was  the  suppression  of  these  Missions.  Some 
idea  of  their  wealth  may  be  formed,  when  it  is  known  that  many  of 
t'"^ra  possessed  100,000  head  of  cattle  each,  together  with  horses  and 
swck  in  the  same  proportion.  The  time  of  their  greatee.,  prosperity 
would  seem  to  have  been  coeval  with  the  last  forty  years  -^f  the  domina- 
tion of  Old  Spnin. 


144 


C'AI'TIVrrV     AMI     ADVK.NTtlRKfl     OF 


1'  ^ 


Mexican  gnvcniincMit.  Ho  bought  a  Inrgc  number  of  stock,  and 
a  variety  of  agricultural  NtoreM,  nieccn  of  artillery,  and  other  mu- 
nitions of  war,  of  the  neighlNirmg  llu8»ian  settlement  at  Roes, 
which  was  about  to  withdraw  from  the  country.  For  these,  he 
makes  a  regular  yearly  payment  in  grain.  lie  has  constructed  a 
fort,  mounting  twelve  piccrs  of  artillerv,  and  capable  of  admitting 
a  garrison  of  a  thousand  men.  The  Sacramento  is  navigable  for 
vessels,  and  Captain  Hutter  owns  several,  which  he  employs  prin- 
cipally in  his  business.  He  told  me  he  should  sow  2400  acres 
of  wheat.  I  saw  as  many  as  300  Indians  in  his  employ.  He 
pays  them  in  beads,  trinkets,  ond  clothing ;  but  they  were  entire- 
ly naked  when  I  saw  them. 

It  was  under  Captain  Butter's  hospitable  roof  that  Captain 
Fremont  and  his  party  found  shelter,  rest,  and  refreshment,  after 
being  nearly  starved  to  death  on  the  mountains,  as  they  were 
returning  from  their  exploring  expedition  to  Oregon,  in  the 
spring  of  1844. 

On  the  2d  day  of  August,  wo  left  Daly's,  and  encamped  the 
first  night  by  the  side  of  the  American  Fork.  The  next  day 
we  crossed  the  river,  and  tfttvollcd  north,  reaching  Bear  River  at 
night.  On  the  third  day  we  went  to  Feather  River,  and  here 
Fellon,  our  guide,  was  taxen  sick.  We  found  that  we  should  be 
detained  some  time,  and  the  prospect  of  being  out  on  the  moun- 
tains, in  the  midst  of  winter,  wos  not  very  agreeable.  We  had 
also  discovered  that  our  guide  was  a  man  of  less  energy  and  res- 
olution than  we  had  supposed.  Under  these  circumstances,  we 
concluded  to  abandon  the  idea  of  crossing  the  Rocky  Mountaint^. 
Fellon  having  been  loA  in  the  care  of  an  old  friend  of  his,  named 
Shadden,  who  would  bestow  on  him  every  attention  which  his 
situation  demanded,  Thomoi  and  1  started  on  a  retreat.     .    % 

We  went  back  to  Neuva  Helvetia,  and  sold  our  horses  and 
other  equipments  to  Captain  Sutter,  at  a  great  sacrifice,  and  took 
in  payment  a  draft  on  a  Mr.  Campbell,  of  St.  Louis,  which  Cap- 
tain Fremont  had  paid  to  one  of  his  men,  a  blacksmith,  named 
Neal,  who  had  been  induced  to  remain  with  Captain  Sutter. 

We  learned  that  there  was  a  whule-ship  at  Yerba  Buena,  bound 
to  the  United  States.  We  started  immediately,  in  one  of  Cap- 
tain Sutter's  schooners,  and  in  six  days  arrived  at  Yerba  Buena, 
just  in  time  to  be  one  day  too  late.  Thomas  concluded  to  re- 
main there,  to  embrace  the  next  opportunity  to  get  home  which 
might  present  itself.  I  met  Mr.  Willard  Buzzell,  who  formerly 
lived  io  Roxbury,  Massachusetts,  and  went  with  him  to  drive  a 
herd  of  cattle  to  a  new  ranche,  on  the  American  Fork.     We 


P 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.    IIEUSTIS. 


145 


stock,  and 
other  mu- 
t  at  Ross, 
r  these,  he 
istructed  a 
f  admitting 
ivigabJe  for 
ploys  prin- 
2400  acres 
jploy.  He 
'ere  entire^ 

at  Captain 

nient,  after 

they  were 

an,  in   the 

ainped  the 
B  next  day 
ar  River  at 
f,  and  here 
e  should  bo 

the  nioun- 
.  We  had 
^y  and  res- 
itances,  we 
IVIountaint^. 
his,  named 

which  his 
at. 

lorses  and 
i,  and  took 
^hich  Cap- 
ith,  named 
Sutter, 
ena,  bound 
le  of  Cap- 
ba  Buena, 
iJed  to  re- 
>me  which 
>  formerly 
to  drive  a 
ork.     We 


drove  up  300  cows  and  300  horses.  The  journey  occupied 
twenty-one  days,  and  gave  me  a  fine  chance  to  examine  the 
country.  We  then  crossed  the  Sacramento,  and  went  about  250 
miles,  to  what  is  called  Yount^s  Valley,  after  more  cattle.  We 
obtained  400  head  of  horned  cattle,  and  100  horses,  and  drove 
them  to  the  ranche.  In  this  trip,  I  went  to  Captain  Smith's 
ranche,  at  Bodega,  near  Ross,  on  the  coast.  Captain  Smith 
was  formerly  of  Baltimore;  he  has  a  fine  place,  is  building 
flour-mills,  and  making  preparations  to  recruit  vessels  with  pro- 
visions, &.C. 

When  I  arrived  at  Mr.  Buzzell's  ranche  the  last  time>  I  found 
a  letter  from  Thomas,  informing  me  that  there  was  a  vessel  at 
Sousaleta,  eight  miles  from  Yerba  Buena,  in  which  we  could  get 
a  passage  to  Valparaiso.  Buzzell  offered  to  give  me  three  miles 
square  of  his  land,  if  I  would  stay  in  the  country,  or  if  I  would 
return,  after  visiting  my  friends.  He  was  a  brother  of  the  man 
concerned  in  burning  the  Convent,  at  Charlestown. 

Having  seen  much  of  ,  .lis  interesting  portion  of  the  world,  and 
public  events  having  urawn  the  attention  of  the  American  people 
to  the  Californias,  I  will  speak  briefly  of  their  agricultural  and 
commercial  capabilities.  They  are  doubtless  destined  to  be- 
come important  sections  of  the  American  continent,  and  would 
long  since  have  risen  to  eminence,  had  they  been  possessed  by 
a  race  competent  to  develop  their  resources,  and  to  complete 
the  work  so  well  commenced  by  nature. 

Upper  California  is  by  far  the  most  valuable,  whether  we  con- 
sider its  natural  endowments  or  the  promise  which  it  gives  of 
future  greatness.  Lower  California,  though  in  many  respects 
inferior,  is  by  no  means  a  worthless  territory.  It  cannot, 
in  its  present  physical  state,  support  a  dense  population,  for, 
being  a  volcanic  country,  it  necessarily  suffers  from  the  lack  of 
water.  Streams  and  springs  are  rare ;  and,  where  they  do  exist, 
much  of  the  soil  is  unsuitable,  for  cultivation.  Violent  hurri- 
canes, accompanied  by  heavy  rains,  sweep  away  much  of  the 
soil ;  yet  we  should  not  hastily  say  that  this  land  is  irredeemable; 
that  a  country  almost  as  large  in  extent  as  the  entire  of  England, 
Scotland,  and  Wales,  is  condemned  to  perpetual  unfruitfulness. 
In  those  portions  of  Lower  California  in  which  water  and  good 
land  are  found  together,  the  productive  powers  of  the  soil  are 
vast.  I  have  no  doubt  that,  in  the  hands  of  an  active,  energetic, 
and  industrious  people —emigrants,  for  example,  from  New  Eng- 
land and  New  York— this  country  would  be  measurably  re- 
deemed. It  suffers,  in  all  likelihood,  as  much  from  the  ignor- 
7 


i 


146 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


ance,  imbecility,  and  indolence  of  its  inhabitants,  as  from  any 
original  defects  in  itself.  Strong  men,  men  of  stout  hearts  and 
able  hands,  would  cause  the  land  to  bend  to  their  will  and  be- 
come fruitful. 

Some  portions  of  the  country  now  yield,  abundantly,  wheat, 
maize,  barley,  6lc.  ;  and  many  of  the  tropical  fruits  are  common. 
Among  the  animals  are  horses,  mules,  black  cattle,  goats,  and 
hogs.  The  sea-coast  rewards  the  toil  of  the  fisherman  with  a 
great  variety  of  fish,  v  hose  quantity  is  only  exceeded  by  their 
quality.  Thousands  of  Yankees  might  live  easily  on  the  coast, 
and,  from  the  fish  they  caught,  would  create  a  mighty  trade, 
as  fruitful  of  wealth  as  that  which  the  Dutch  once  carried  on  in 
the  herring-fishery.  There  are  profitable  pearl-fisheries  on  thi.; 
coast,  which  would  undoubtedly  yield  far  better  than  they  now 
do,  if  managed  by  people  with  more  of  the  '*  go  ahead  "  principle 
in  them.  It  is  not  improbable,  from  certain  indications,  that 
gold  and  silver  abound  in  the  country. 

The  people  of  Lower  California  consist  of  whites,  blacks,  and 
the  mixed  breeds,  formed  by  marriages  among  the  diflTerent 
races.  They  are  three  or  four  thousand  in  number,  but  are  both 
ignorant  and  licentious. 

Upper  California  is  in  many  respects  a  very  diflTerent  country; 
it  has  been  more  favored  by  nature.  Whether  considered  in 
reference  to  its  commercial  or  its  agricultural  resources,  it  alike 
demands  and  receives  the  warmest  eulogiums  of  the  traveller.  It 
is  hoped  that  a  superior  race  of  men  may  one  day  inherit  this 
country,  so  richly  endowed  with  natural  advantages. 

There  are  several  rivers  which  will  be  found  useful  in  internal 
navigation,  and  are  now  the  cause  of  fruitfulness  to  the  soil. 
The  valleys  of  the  large  rivers,  as  those  of  the  San  Joaquin  and 
the  Sacramento,  abound  with  rich  soil,  valuable  productions, 
and  useful  animals ;  and  need  only  be  settled  by  industrious 
and  ingenious  people,  to  yield,  bountifully,  many  of  the  most 
valuable  articles  of  commerce.  The  valley  of  the  Sacramento, 
particularly,  is  the  scene  of  great  beauty  and  excellence.  The 
land  is  mostly  rich,  the  productions  varied,  and  the  means  of  im- 
provement vast.  In  wood,  this  valley  is  uncommonly  rich,  both 
as  to  quantity  and  quality.  There  is  plenty  of  white  pine,  of  the 
largest  description;  the  common  white  oak,  which  grows  to  a 
great  size,  and  in  a  form  of  singular  beauty ;  abundance  of  live 
oak,  furnishing  timber  of  rare  excellence,  and  the  white  oak 
proper,  the  noblest  in  the  world ;  the  ash,  also  good ;  and  the 
beautiful  plane-tree,  which  reaches  to  a  very  great  height. 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.     HF.USTIS. 


147 


s  from  any 
hearts  and 
ill  and  be^ 

tly,  wheat, 
e  common, 
goats,  and 
an  with  a 
d  by  their 
the  coast, 
hty  trade, 
rried  on  in 
ies  on  thi ; 
1  they  now 
"  principle 
ations,  that 

blacks,  and 
le  different 
>ut  are  both 

snt  country ; 
insidered  in 
ces,  it  alike 
raveller.  It 
inherit  this 

I  in  internal 
to  the  soil. 
Foaquin  and 
>roductions, 
industrious 
>r  the  most 
Sacramento, 
ence.  The 
leans  of  im- 
r  rich,  both 
pine,  of  the 
grows  to  a 
nee  of  live 
white  oak 
>d ;  and  the 
ight. 


The  climate  of  this  valley  is  various.  That  portion  of  it  which 
is  near  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and  for  about  one  hundred  miles 
up  the  stream,  is  very  hot  in  summer,  though  modified  by  sea- 
breezes;  while  the  upper  country  has  a  climate  unsurpassed 
upon  the  face  of  the  earth. 

The  valley  of  the  San  Joaquin  is  a  beautiful  country ;  but 
during  the  rainy  season  it  becomes  completely  saturated  with 
water,  while  the  dry  season  causes  it  to  resemble  a  blazing  fur- 
nace. The  exhalations  from  the  water  give  rise  to  fatal  diseases, 
but  this  difficulty  might  be  remedied.  The  waters  accumulated 
during  the  months  of  rain,  and  the  drying  up  of  which  in  the  hot 
season  causes  so  much  injury,  might  all  be  carried  into  the  San 
Joaquin,  by  artificial  means.  This  would  have  been  done  long 
ago  had  the  country  been  settled  by  the  Anglo-Saxon  race.  It 
would  pay  for  reclaiming,  as  it  contains  some  six  hundred  miles 
of  the  richest  prairie  land  in  the  world,  vast  forests,  valuable 
timber,  and  a  great  variety  of  animals.  Rice  might  also  be  culti- 
vated with  success  on  the  islands  near  the  mouth  of  the  river. 

The  valley  of  the  Jesus  Maria  River  is  also  a  fine  country. 
That  of  the  Clamet  lies  north  of  the  Snowy  Mountains,  and, 
were  natural  boundaries  regarded,  would  be  held  as  belonging  to 
the  American  portion  of  Oregon.  It  is  represented  as  rich  and 
beautiful,  but  the  Clamet  does  not  fall  into  the  Bay  of  San  Fran- 
cisco, as  do  the  other  rivers  above  named.  That  portion  of 
the  country  lying  to  the  north  of  the  regions  already  spoken  of 
is  very  valuable,  and  without  doubt  will  one  day  be  the  home  of  a 
powerful  people. 

Even  now,  as  poorly  as  the  soil  is  cultivated,  agriculture  yields 
immensely  in  Upper  California.  Indian  corn,  wheat,  barley, 
and  oats  grow  abundantly.  The  sweet  potatoe,  and  the  common 
kind,  yield  good  crops.  Hemp  and  flax  might  be  grown  in  in- 
definite quantities ;  and  of  fruits  there  are  grapes,  olives,  figs, 
lemons,  oranges,  &c. 

I  have  said  that  California  is  destined  to  be  a  great  commercial 
country.  It  would  seem  to  be  some  contradiction  to  this,  to  say  that 
it  has  only  two  good  harbors,  on  a  sea-coast  of  more  than  twelve 
hundred  miles.  But  these  harbors  are  among  the  finest  in  the 
world,  and  capable  of  supplying  the  wants  of  the  most  extend- 
ed commerce  that  either  the  ambition  or  the  avarice  of  man 
could  create.  That  of  San  Diego  is  situated  in  latitude  33° 
17'  north,  and  is  both  safe  and  commodious.  The  Bay  of  San 
Francisco  is  that  which  must,  however,  attract  the  greatest  de- 
gree of  attention,  and  toward  which  the  eyes  of  the  statesmen  of 


148 


CAPTIVITY     AND    ADVENTURES    OP 


^1 


I 


the  old  world  have  been  directed  for  several  years  past.  It  is  ob- 
vious that  a  revolution  would  be  worked  in  commerce,  should 
the  country  to  which  this  bay  belongs  come  into  the  possession 
of  a  hardy  and  industrious  people,  with  tastes  and  abilities  for 
maritime  pursuit"*.  There  is  no  doubt  that  England  has  been 
looking  at  it,  with  covetous  eyes,  for  a  long  time.  That  it  is  an 
object  worthy  of  human  ambition,  and  likely  to  give  the  utmost 
power  to  those  holding  it,  in  those  seas  on  which  future  empire 
is  to  be  contended  for,  will  appear  from  a  description  of  its  sit- 
uation and  advantages. 

The  entrance  to  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco  is  in  latitude  Sl"^ 
58'  north,  and  the  water  on  the  bar  is  about  fifly  feet  deep,  at 
low  tide.  The  passage  into  the  bay  is  five  miles  long,  and  sus- 
ceptible of  thorough  defence.  The  entrance  is  two  miles  wide 
on  the  ocean.  Where  the  channel  commences  opening  into  the 
bay,  are  two  islands,  so  placed  as  to  allow  those  holding  then  i^ 
completely  command  the  channel  itself,  and  all  points  of  entrau 
into  the  different  parts  of  the  bay.  From  the  channel  to  t  v; 
northeastern  point  of  the  bay,  the  distance  is  thirty-five  miles ;  to 
the  northern  point,  twenty-four  miles.  The  bay  itself  varies  in 
width,  in  different  parts,  from  four  to  twenty  miles.  It  is  full  of 
islands,  and  in  all  parts  of  it  the  anchorage  is  good,  its  shores 
abounding  with  havens,  in  which  the  largest  ships  can  ride  within 
one  hundred  yards  of  the  land,  and  safe  from  the  assaults  of  the 
hardest  storms.  The  Sacramento  and  San  Joaquin  Rivers,  and 
other  streams  of  less  magnitude,  fall  into  this  bay ;  and  all  the 
regions  drained  by  their  waters  belong  to  that  section  of  country 
which  nature  seems  to  have  destined  to  become  a  mighty  nation, 
with  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco  for  its  chief  harbor.  Were  these 
regions  settled  by  an  enterprising  people,  and  their  various  ex- 
cellences turned  to  proper  account,  we  should  see,  on  the  western 
shores  of  our  continent,  a  country  as  powerful  as  any  mentioned 
in  history. 

The  only  place  of  consequence  on  this  bay  is  Yerba  Buena,  a 
small  American  village,  at  which  vessels  effect  repairs  and  obtain 
provisions.  This  place  is  probably  the  germ  of  the  future  city 
that  is  to  be  enriched  by  the  immense  commerce  that  must  cen- 
tre here.  Americans  have  commenced  the  work  that  they  are, 
most  likely,  destined  to  complete,  that  of  opening  up  to  human 
enterprise  one  of  the  most  wealthy  districts  of  the  earth,  where 
universal  humanity  may  find  a  home. 

Recent  accounts  from  Yerba  Buena  represent  that  many  of  the 
Mormons  were  living  there,  in  tents,  while  building  their  houses. 


th 

fol 

111 

dif 

ii 

hi 

P 
al 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.    HEUSTIS. 


149 


An  advanced  guard  of  these  people,  about  5000  in  number,  had 
arrived  in  the  country.  A  much  larger  number  were  expected 
to  join  them,  and  they  will  form  a  powerful  settlement,  should  no 
internal  feuds  arise  to  break  them  up. 

The  animal  kingdom  of  Upper  California  is  varied,  rich,  and 
extensive.  There  are  many  species  of  quadrupeds,  which  I  have 
not  space  to  enumerate.  Domestic  animals  are  plenty.  Game 
is  found  in  such  variety,  and  of  such  excellence,  as  to  make 
Northern  California  the  very  Elysian  Fields  of  sportsmen.  The 
ornithology  of  California  is  exceedingly  rich,  and  adds  much  to 
the  general  desirableness  of  the  country.  The  waters,  whether 
of  lake,  river,  or  the  ocean,  are  well  filled  with  fish.  They  are 
not  so  much  used  in  Upper  California,  as  in  Lower,  the  former 
producing,  so  much  more  bountifully  than  the  latter,  other  ar- 
ticles of  food.  Immense  numbers  of  salmon  are  taken,  many  of 
them  of  great  size,  and  all  of  superb  quality.  Salmon  trout  are 
also  numerous  in  some  rivers.  Large  sturgeons  are  sometimes 
caught.  Near  Monterey,  mackerel  are  taken  easily,  and  in  large 
numbers. 

The  whites  and  half-breeds  in  Upper  California  are  about 
6000  in  number.  The  Indians  reach  to  40,000.  It  is  diffi- 
cult to  say  which  is  the  most  contemptible  race,  Indians,  hal& 
breeds,  or  whites ;  but  I  think  the  latter. 

In  minerals,  California  is  very  rich,  the  bosom  of  the  earth 
being  filled  with  undeveloped  wealth.  There  are  beds  of  coal  in 
various  quarters ;  and  in  the  vicinity  of  San  Francisco  some  of  a 
bituminous  character,  and  very  good,  have  been  discovered.  Gold 
and  silver  mines  exist,  some  of  which  are  well  known,  very  rich, 
and  easily  worked.  A  most  valuable  mine  of  quicksilver  is  also 
reported  to  be  in  the  mountains  east  of  Monterey. 

Were  I  about  to  leave  my  native  country,  there  is  no  place 
that  I  would  sooner  select  for  my  new  home  than  Northern  Cali- 
fornia. The  human  race  has  done  little  for  it,  while  nature  has 
lavished  upon  it  her  most  bounteous  gifts.  Rich  in  natural  pro- 
ductions, with  a  grateful  soil,  and  the  most  magnificent  harbors 
in  the  world,  and  needing  only  human  exertions  to  rise  to  the 
highest  pitch  of  power  and  renown,  we  might  be  justified  in  ap- 
plying to  it  the  words  of  the  poet,  respecting  another  fair  region, 
and  declare  that  , 

"  All  save  the  spirit  of  man  is  divine  !  " 

Having  devoted  a  few  pages  to  a  description  of  California,  I 
will  now  resume  the  story  of  my  adventures.     As  soon  as  the  let- 


150 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES    OP 


ter  from  Thomas  reached  me,  at  the  ranche  of  Mr.  BuzzcII,  I 
started  for  Yerba  Biiena.  I  found  the  bark  Fame,  Captain 
Mitchell,  from  Connecticut,  at  Sousaleta,  a  small  place  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  bay  from  Yerba  Buena.  Captain  Mitchell, 
in  the  spirit  of  that  generosity  which  is  so  common  among  sea- 
men, kindly  offered  to  take  Thomas  and  myself,  free  of  expense, 
to  Valparaiso,  whither  he  was  bound.  We  sailed  the  first  day 
of  November,  having  spent  five  months  in  California.  On  the 
29th  of  January,  1846,  we  arrived  at  Valparaiso.  The  incidents 
of  the  voyage  I  have  not  space  to  detail,  and  must  content  my- 
self with  expressing,  in  this  public  manner,  my  heartfelt  thanks 
to  Captain  Mitchell,  for  the  extreme  kindness  with  which  he 
invariably  treated  us,  while  we  were  on  board  his  vessel.  May 
the  blessing  of  Heaven  reward  him  for  his  benevolent  deeds. 

I  remained  at  Valparaiso  until  the  5th  day  of  April,  when, 
having  secured  a  passage  on  board  the  ship  Edward  Everett, 
Captain  Sweetlin,  bound  for  Boston,  I  commenced  my  home- 
ward voyage.  The  Edward  Everett  was  a  beautiful  ship,  of  be- 
tween seven  and  eight  hundred  tons,  deeply  laden  with  copper 
ore,  hides,  and  other  products  of  Chili.  The  first  twenty-four 
hours  spent  on  board  satisfied  me  that  Captain  Sweetlin  was 
both  a  gentleman  and  a  sailor;  and,  as  thiB  saying  goes,  "  a  good 
captain  makes  a  good  crew,"  so  I  found  the  sailors  well  satisfied 
both  with  the  captain  and  the  ship. 

We  passed  the  Island  of  Juan  Fernandez,  with  a  strong  breeze, 
and  went  dashing  to  the  southward  along  the  land.  Long  afler 
the  shore  had  been  lost  to  the  view,  the  ridges  of  the  lofly  Andes 
were  seen  above  the  clouds,  with  their  rugged  outlines  defined 
along  the  sky.  Every  day  became  shorter,  the  weather  colder, 
and  the  sea  more  boisterous  and  broken,  as  we  advanced  on  our 
course.  It  was  winter,  and,  as  we  approached  Cape  Horn,  the 
royalmasts  and  yards  were  sent  down,  new  canvass  was  bent,  and 
every  thing  secured  to  meet  the  storms  which  rage  at  that  season 
of  the  year.  The  wind  still  favored  us,  but  became  squally,  oc- 
casionally accompanied  with  violent  hailstorms. 

When  off  the  pitch  of  the  Cape,  I  saw  a  mountain  of  ice, 
about  seven  miles  to  the  southward  of  us<  It  was  apparently  be- 
tween three  and  four  hundred  feet  high,  and  of  a  rugged  coni- 
cal form,  with  a  base  that  extended  several  miles  in  circumfer- 
ence; its  apex  was  white  as  snow,  but,  about  half-way  down,  it 
was  shaded  by  the  reflection  of  dark  and  heavy  clouds,  that 
formed  a  girdle  about  the  horizon.  Around  its  base,  the  long- 
rolling  seas  broke  in  ceaseless  roar,  towering  aloft  in  whitened 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    IIRUSTIR. 


1^1 


Buzzcll,  I 
e.  Captain 
ice  on  the 
Mitchell, 
mong  sea- 
>f  expense, 
le  first  day 
On  the 
e  incidents 
ontent  my- 
elt  thanks 
which  he 
Bsel.     May 
deeds. 
>ril,  when, 
•d  Everett, 
my  home- 
ship,  of  be- 
rith  copper 
twenty-four 
^eetlin  was 
18,  "  a  good 
ell  satisfied 

)ng  breeze, 
Long  after 
ofty  Andes 
les  defined 
her  colder, 
ced  on  our 
Horn,  the 
s  bent,  and 
that  season 
iqually,  oc- 

ain  of  ice, 
arently  be- 
gged coni- 
circumfer- 
y  down,  it 
louds,  that 
i,  the  long- 
II  whitened 


foam,  higher  than  our  ship's  mast-heads.  We  were  scudding  at 
the  time  before  a  westerly  gale,  under  a  close-reefed  maintopsail, 
and,  as  evening  advanced,  the  iceberg  was  soon  lost  in  the  dark- 
ness of  night. 

The  Cape  doubled,  we  hauled  to  the  northward,  passing  Staten 
Island,  and  the  Falkland  Islands,  the  weather  becoming  milder 
every  day,  and  the  sun  shining  clearer  and  longer.  Nothing  worthy 
of  note  occurred  until  we  crossed  the  equator,  a  few  days  after 
which  we  spoke  the  ship  Courier,  from  Rio  Janeiro,  bound  to 
New  York.  As  we  were  very  deeply  laden,  and  she  a  very  fust 
sailer,  she  soon  lefl  us  out  of  sight  astern,  and,  I  believe,  arrived 
in  New  York  a  fortnight  before  we  reached  Boston.  We  also 
spoke  a  Danish  ship,  and,  learning  that  her  captain  was  sick,  we 
sent  a  boat  to  board  her,  with  medicines,  and  other  articles,  of 
which  she  was  in  need. 

When  in  the  latitude  of  Bermuda,  we  were  struck  by  a  whirl- 
wind,  when  under  all  sail,  upon  a  wind,  which  in  an  instant 
snapped  the  cross-jack  yard  in  two,  in  the  slings,  blew  away  the 
mizen  topsail,  mainsail,  and  the  topgallant  sails,  fore  and  aft.  It 
gave  no  warning  of  its  approach,  bui  burst  upon  us  with  a  noise 
as  loud  as  the  report  of  a  cannon,  and,  whirling  along,  passed  to 
leeward,  tearing  the  sea  up  in  its  erratic  course.  A  new  cross- 
jack  yard  was  fitted,  and  sent  aloft ,  other  sails  were  bent,  and 
once  more  we  quietly  dodged  along  for  our  port  of  destination. 
We  passed  through  the  South  Channel,  and  saw  hundreds  of 
coasters  standing  north  and  south.  We  expected  to  make  Cape 
Cod  the  next  day,  and,  as  I  wished  to  have  a  look  at  my  native 
land  as  early  as  possible,  I  went  on  deck  at  daylight,  while  the 
stars  were  yet  twinkling  in  mellow  brightness,  and  found  the 
ship  gliding  along  slowly  before  the  wind,  having  every  stitch  of 
sail  set  to  receive  the  passing  breeze.  A  man  was  aloft,  on  the 
main  royal  yard,  and,  in  answer  to  a  question  put  by  the  officer 
of  the  deck,  he  replied,  "  Yes,  sir,  I  can  see  two  lights  plainly, 
about  a  couple  of  points  before  the  larboard  beam."  "  Tnat  will 
do,"  said  the  mate,  "  come  down;"  and  then,  turning  to  me,  he 
passed  the  compliments  of  the  morning,  and  remarked  that  the 
Cape  Cod  lights  were  in  sight,  and,  if  the  breeze  but  freshened 
a  little,  and  continued  fair,  we  might  expect  to  be  in  Boston  that 
night.  Though  far  from  being  constitutionally  nervous,  I  must 
confess  that  this  intimation  made  me  almost  crazy  with  delight. 
I  rambled  about  the  deck,  musing  on  the  anticipated  pleasures 
of  greeting  once  more  my  kindred  and  friends,  and  treading  the 
free  soil  of  old  Massachusetts.     The  sun  rose  from  a  hazy  bed, 


153 


CAPTIVITY    AND    ADVENTURES    OP 


shorn  of  his  beams,  and,  like  a  clieerlesa  sluggard,  toiled  through 
the  morning  mist,  in  his  ceaseless  course.  This  was  hailed  by 
the  mate  as  a  favorable  omen  for  the  continuance  of  an  easterly 
breeze;  and,  sure  enough,  before  eight  o'clock,  we  were  spank- 
ingaloiiff  most  gloriously,  at  the  rate  of  seven  miles  an  hour. 

The  Cape  was  doubled,  and  old  Massachusetts  Bay  opened  to 
receive  us.  Onward  the  noble  ship  pressed,  and  every  hour  some 
well-known  place  rose  to  view.  About  noon,  Boston  Light  was 
in  sight  IVom  the  mast-head,  ond  a  pi!ot-boat  was  seen  stretching 
across  our  bows.  It  was  the  Hornet ;  and,  the  wind  having  lulled 
into  a  very  quiet  breeze,  a  pilot  sheered  alongside  in  a  canoe,  and 
came  on  board,  without  our  shortening  sail.  "How  do  you 
flourish,  Captain  Hunt,  and  what's  the  news?"  was  the  first  sal- 
utation of  our  captain.  "  Why,"  replied  the  pilot,  "  you  see  me 
just  the  same  as  when  you  went  away,  only  a  little  older,  and, 
excepting  an  infernal  noise  which  the  newspapers  are  kicking 
up  about  the  Oregon  Territory,  there  is  no  news  worth  repeating." 
"  What,  do  you  expect  war  about  it  ?  "  asked  our  captain.  "  No," 
replied  Captain  Hunt,  "  it  will  all  end  in  smoke ;  the  papers 
must  have  some  goose  to  pluck,  and,  by  the  time  they  have 
plucked  Oregon  bare,  and  smged  it  like  a  Thanksgiving  turkey, 
they  will  pounce  upon  somethmg  else."  The  conversation  was 
continued,  on  various  subjects,  as  the  two  captains  walked  fore 
and  aft  on  the  quarter-deck.  I  was  much  pleased  with  the  man- 
ly appearance  of  Captain  Hunt,  and  the  plain  straight-forward- 
ness of  hii  conversation.  I  learn  that  he  stands  at  the  head  of 
his  profession,  and  has  several  times  displayed  great  presence  of 
mind  in  the  midst  of  danger. 

We  passed  the  Light,  Boston  was  full  in  sight,  and  the  glo- 
rious sun,  from  a  cloudless  sky,  was  gilding  her  numerous  spires 
with  his  departing  beams.  The  State  House,  Bunker-Hill  Mon- 
ument, ond  many  other  well-known  landmarks,  stood  out  from 
the  common  mass  of  buildings  which  formed  the  magnificent 
panorama  before  us.  The  sun  went  down,  and  yet  we  were  not 
up;  but  the  wind,  though  light,  was  fair,  and  still  there  was 
hope  that  we  should  arrive  before  the  tide  turned.  Slowly  and 
silently  we  moved  'ong,  and  finally  anchored  off  the  end  of  Lewis's 
Wharf,  about  nine  Tock  in  the  evening,  on  the  25th  of  June, 
after  a  passage  of  >.  jhty  days.  Thus,  having  circumnavigated 
the  fflooet  I  was  c  xe  more  at  home  ! 

Very  soon  afte  landing  I  was  ushered  into  the  presence  of  my 
mother,  brothers  and  sister,  whom  I  found  in  the  enjoyment  of 
health  and  prosi/Crity.     It  wos  just  nine  years,  to  a  day,  since  I 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL    D.    IIEUSTIS. 


through 
lailed  by 
easterly 
e  spank- 
hour, 
tpened  to 
our  some 
ight  was 
tretching 
ng  lulled 
inoe,  and 
do  you 
i  first  sal- 
u  see  me 
der,  and, 
)  kicking 
peating." 
,    "No," 
le  papers 
ley  have 
^  turkey, 
ation  was 
Iked  fore 
the  man- 
-for  ward- 
head  of 
isence  of 

the  glo- 
us  spires 
[ill  Mon- 
3Ut  from 
gnificent 
vere  not 
lere  was 
>wly  and 
'Lewis's 
)f  June, 
avigated 

'e  of  my 

iient  of 

since  I 


153 


had  seen  them.  The  feelings  inspired  by  that  meeting  it  is  use- 
less for  me  to  attempt  to  describe.  With  hearts  so  full  of  joy  as 
almost  to  choke  their  words,  they  bade  me  welcome  to  home  and 
liberty.  Like  the  shepherd,  who  rejoiced  more  over  the  lost 
sheep,  when  found,  than  he  did  over  the  ninety  and  nine  that  had 
nut  been  astray,  my  aged  mother  seemed  to  manifest  toward  me 
a  double  share  of  that  affection  which  mothers  alone  can  feel. 
She  was  sayiiig,  at  the  dinner-table,  that  very  day,  that  if  she 
could  only  see  me,  and  her  brother,  .•^'^m  she  had  not  seen  for 
forty  years,  she  should  feel  satisfied.  si.i  four  o'clock  in  the  af- 
ternoon the  brother  arrived  in  the  cars,  and,  at  nine  o'clock,  her 
wish  was  fully  gratified  by  my  appearance.  In  the  language 
of  the  just  and  devout  Simeon,  she  seemed  ready  to  exclaim, 
"  Lord,  now  lettest  thou  thy  servant  depart  in  peace,  according 
to  thy  word,  for  mine  eyes  have  seen  thy  salvation." 

Thomas,  my  companion  in  California,  sailed  from  Valparaiso 
a  few  days  before  me,  in  the  Chilian  bark  Almendralina,  Captain 
Brown,  bound  for  New  York,  where  she  arrived  about  the  15th 
of  June. 

After  spending  a  few  days  with  my  friends  in  Boston,  I  went 
to  Jefferson  county,  New  York,  where  I  was  received  by  my  ^'d 
associates  and  friends  in  a  very  kind  and  cordial  manner.  At 
Watertown,  they  fired  cannon  and  called  out  a  band  of  music,  to 
manifest  their  joy  at  my  return.  I  also  visited  the  battle-field  at 
Prescott,  and  viewed  the  scene  of  that  desperate  fight  in  which 
I  had  been  taken  prisoner.  Time  had  worked  some  changes  in 
the  appearance  of  the  place,  but  the  recollections  of  the  past 
were  still  fresh  in  my  mind,  and  I  will  leave  the  reader  to  imagine 
the  feelings  with  which  I  trod  again  that  field  of  deadly  strife. 
7» 


f?^-':', 


•<U;'- 


154 


f^f    )  \ 


-*,) 


CHAPTER   XV. 

The  English  Criminal  Code — Establishment  of  Penal  Colonies — 
Settlement  of  Van  Dieman*s  Land — Description  of  the  Coun- 
try— Extermination  of  the  Natives — Cruelty  of  Sir  George 
Arthur — Ruthless  Policy  of  England — Chartists  in  Exile — 
Interesting  Letter  from  the  Honorable  Edward  Everett. 

The  cruelty  of  the  English  criminal  code  has  h  ;  been  pro- 
verbial throughout  the  world,  as  has  the  tenacity  » .  a  which  she 
has  clung  to  Taws  enacted  in  what  were  emphatically  the  "  dark 
ages,"  so  far  as  human  rights  and  human  feelings  are  concerned. 
Not  only  were  her  state  trials  **  unclean  shambles,"  but  all  her 
courts  were  courts  of  death,  the  loss  of  life  being  incurred  fur 
numerous  offences  that  are  now,  in  nearly  all  countries,  left 
to  the  correction  of  either  a  mild  discipline,  or  to  public  opinion. 

The  establishment  of  penal  colonies,  to  meet  as  well  the  in- 
crease of  crime  consequent  on  such  rigidity  of  the  law  as  the  de- 
mand of  slowly-advancing  civilization  for  its  melioration,  has  had 
some  effect  in  the  way  of  checking  the  brutalizing  tendency  of 
the  British  code ;  and,  in  so  far,  these  colonies  are  perhaps  to  be 
looked  upon,  if  not  with  respect,  at  least  with  a  spirit  approach- 
ing to  that  of  kindness.  But  it  is  only  by  comparison  that  the 
mind  is  led  to  this  conclusion ;  and  some  conception  of  what  the 
English  code  was,  and  measurably  is,  may  be  arrived  at,  when 
even  these  wretched  colonies,  and  the  odious  system  of  transpor- 
tation, are,  by  comparison,  favorably  regarded  as  improvements  ! 
Upon  what  must  be  the  political  effect  of  the  system,  in  throw- 
ing a  population  of  a  peculiar  character  into  the  southern  hemis- 
phere, the  members  of  which  must  become  the  progenitors  of  the 
founders  of  a  mighty  empire  of  **•  Anglo-Saxons,"  a  curious  and 
instructive  chapter  might  be  written.  I  must  leave  it,  however, 
to  other  hands. 

The  Island  of  Van  Dieman's  Land,  though  discovered  more 
than  two  centuries  ago,  by  the  Dutch,  had  no  settlement  on  it 
prior  to  1803,  in  which  year  a  penal  settlement  was  formed  by 
th&  English,  near  the  mouth  of  the  Derwcnt.  This  settlement 
was  the  result  of  accident,  rather  than  of  design  ;  but,  the  next 


ADVENTURES     OF    CAPTAIN    HEUSTIS. 


155 


Colonies — 
f  the  Court' 
Sir  George 
in  Exile — 
erett. 

;  been  pro- 
\  which  she 

the  "  dark 
concerned, 
but  all  her 
icurred  fur 
ntries,  left 
ic  opinion, 
veil  the  in- 

as  the  de- 
)n,  has  had 
ndency  of 
'haps  to  be 

approach- 
>n  that  the 
>f  what  the 
1  at,  when 
f  transpor- 
ovements  ! 

in  throw- 
irn  hemis- 
tors  of  the 
rious  and 

however, 

sred  more 
lent  on  it 
armed  by 
ettlement 
,  the  next 


year,  a  colony  of  Botany  Bay  convicts  was  formed  at  what  is  now 
Hobart  Town.  It  was  a  strictly  penal  settlement.  As  the  pop- 
ulation increased,  and  the  capabilities  of  the  country  became 
known,  the  value  of  land  increased,  and  a  sort  of  speculation  was 
the  result.  Then  came  reaction,  and  "  hard  times,"  with  insol- 
vency and  ruin.  The  present  population  is  about  90,000,  of 
which  number  something  more  than  one  third  are  free  emigrants, 
and  the  remainder  either  emancipated  convicts,  or  those  still  un- 
der sentence.  Though  there  are  good  people  on  the  Island,  as 
there  are  every  where — there  was  one  righteous  man  even  in 
Sodom — their  number  is  not  large.  The  vice  of  intemperance 
is  terribly  prevalent. 

What  tends  to  keep  down  a  better  state  of  morals,  is  the  con- 
tempt in  which  labor  is  held.  The  laboring  class  is  mainly  com- 
posed of  convicts,  and  as  it  is  the  inevitable  tendency  of  things  to 
degrade  all  laborers  to  the  condition  of  the  lowest  and  worst  of 
their  number,  the  working-men  of  the  Island  sink  to  the  level  of 
the  convicts,  in  public  estimation,  if  not  in  fact,  rather  than  ele- 
vate the  convicts  to  the  condition  from  which  themselves  start. 
Levelling  upward  is  a  difficult  task ;  levelling  downward,  a 
very  easy  one.  As,  in  the  midst  of  slavery,  all  laborers,  how- 
ever politically  free  they  may  be,  are  looked  upon  as  being  part 
and  parcel  of  a  servile  race,  by  the  influential  classes,  because 
pursuing  employments  appropriated  mainly  to  slaves ;  so,  in  a 
country  where  servitude  is  the  punishment  of  crime,  will  the  in- 
dustrial classes  find  themselves  degraded  to  the  level  of  crim- 
inals. 

There  are  churches,  schools,  and  newspapers,  in  this  colony. 
Some  literary  and  scientific  institutions  are  in  operation.  A  lu- 
natic asylum  has  been  established,  and  I  should  think  it  might 
be  well  filled,  considering  the  effect  of  oppression  and  cruelty  in 
driving  people  mad. 

The  climate  of  the  Island  is  good,  and  nature  has  done  much 
for  it.  Health  generally  prevails.  The  soil  in  the  valleys  is 
good,  but  fit  for  nothing  but  pasturage  on  the  high  grounds,  and 
not  even  for  that  in  the  dry  season.  The  proportion  of  really 
good  land  to  that  of  the  bad  and  indifferent,  is  as  one  to  four ; 
but  the  former  produces,  abundantly,  almost  all  the  necessaries 
and  some  of  the  luxuries  of  life.  Fruits  common  to  mild  cli- 
mates are  abundant ;  as  are  wheat,  potatoes,  oats,  barley,  &c. 
There  are  large  flocks  of  sheep  on  the  Island,  and  the  exporta- 
tion of  their  wool  to  England  is  a  very  important  item  in  the 
trade  of  the  Colony.     Cattle  and  horses  have  more  attention  paid 


156 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


to  their  improvement  than  men  reciive.  The  wild  animals  are 
the  opossum,  the  kangaroo,  the  badger,  &c. ;  and  among  the 
birds  are  the  eagle,  the  emu,  the  swnn,  parrots,  and  cockatoos. 

Of  the  natural  features  of  the  country  I  must  speak  with  brev< 
ity.  The  Island  is  crossed  by  two  ranges  of  mountains,  which 
nre  called  the  Eastern  and  Western  Ranges.  Mount  Wellington, 
which  is  but  three  miles  from  Hobart  Town,  is  the  highest  point, 
ascending  to  more  than  three  quarters  of  a  mile,  and  being  cov- 
ered with  snow  most  of  the  year.  On  its  summit  there  is  a  lake, 
from  which  the  town  is  supplied  with  fresh  water,  which  is  car- 
ried by  an  aqueduct.  When  the  lake  overflows,  the  waters  find 
their  way  down  a  cataract,  having  a  fall  of  more  than  200  feet. 
The  principal  rivers  are  the  Tamar  and  the  Derwent,  the  pleas- 
ant names  of  which  must  oilen  raise  sighs  in  the  bosoms  of  the 
exiles,  reminding  them,  as  they  cannot  fail  to  do,  of  the  old 
country,  and  of  their 

"  childhood's  innocent  day, 

And  the  dear  fields  and  friendships  far  away." 

The  Derwent  is  navigable  for  upward  of  twenty  miles  from  its 
mouth  by  large  vessels.  The  other  rivers  are  small.  The  Ta- 
mar is  formed  by  an  union  of  several  small  streams,  and  falls  into 
the  sea  on  the  northern  shore.  There  are  numerous  small  lakes 
in  the  interior.  The  trees  are  abundant.  Among  them  are  the 
cedar,  the  oak,  the  pine,  myrtle,  cherry,  peppermint,  and  several 
descriptions  of  the  gum  tree.  These  last  grow  to  a  great  size, 
and  their  gum  is  used  for  food  by  the  natives. 

The  aborigines  of  Van  Dieman's  Land  rank  very  low  in  the 
scale  of  humanity.  It  would,  I  thi;:'',  be  hard  to  find  a  more  de- 
graded race.  They  are  black,  with  hair  much  resembling  that 
of  the  negro,  and  their  whole  appearance  is  the  reverse  of  attrac- 
tive. They  are  cannibals,  and  were  in  the  habit  of  devouring 
the  prisoners  made  in  their  wars.  But,  however  degraded  they 
are,  the  fact  furnishes  no  excuse  for  the  ferocious  treatment  they 
experienced  at  the  hands  cf  the  English,  by  whom  they  have 
been  almost  exterminated.  Having  been  encroached  upon,  they 
retaliated  upon  their  oppressors.  Then  a  war  of  extermination 
was  commenced  upon  them.  The  Governor  placed  a  bounty  on 
their  scalps,  as  British  officials  on  this  continent  have  repeatedly 
done  on  American  scalps;  and  a  mongrel  army,  composed  of 
regular  soldiers,  emigrants,  and  convicts,  was  sent  against  them. 
The  contest  was  marked  by  all  that  cruelty,  vindictiveness,  and 
treachery,  which  enter  so  largely  into  the  British  military  sys- 
tem ;  and  in  a  few  weeks,  several  thousands  of  the  natives  were 


CAPTAIN     DANIRL     D.    11EU8TI8. 


167 


murdered,  without  distinction  of  sex  or  age ;  the  old  man  and 
the  infant,  the  hardy  male  and  the  helpless  woman,  falling  alike 
before  that  potent  instrument  of  civilization,  the  British  bayonet. 
Their  bodies  were  lefl  to  rot  on  the  soil  they  claimed  as  their 
own,  and  which  they  had  sought  to  defend,  the  only  crime  for 
which  they  were  so  severely  punished.  And  who  was  the  leader 
in  this  most  glorious  enterprise  of  t^ar  ?  Who  was  the  chief,  un> 
der  whose  direction  was  thus  woven  another  blood-stained  gar- 
land, to  he  worn  as  a  wreath  by  Britannia?  By  whom  was  this 
addition  made  to  the  brilliancy  of  the  "  meteor  flag  "  of  England? 
Why,  by  the  same  man  whose  atrocious  deeds  in  Canada  have 
made  his  name  an  archetype  fur  all  that  is  cruel  and  base — by 
Sir  George  Arthur  himself,  who  was  sent,  reeking  with  the  blood 
of  savages,  with  whom  he  had  broken  faith,  to  pour  out  the  blood 
of  civilized  men  with  equal  profuseness,  and  to  prove  equally 
faithless  in  his  engagements  with  them.  As  a  reward  for  his 
base  subserviency  to  inhuman  power,  he  has  been  made  Gover- 
nor of  Bombay,  a  portion  of  Britain's  vast  Indian  empire.  There 
he  will  give  new  proofs,  in  due  time,  of  the  ferocity  of  his  nature, 
and  of  his  indifference  to  his  word.  His  course  round  the  globe 
is  marked  with  the  blood  of  the  victims  of  his  rapacity,  his  am- 
bition, and  his  faithlessness.  When  the  time  shall  come  for  him 
to  appear  and  receive  judgment,  before  that  tribunal  to  which 
all  things  are  known,  from  what  different  regions  will  his  accusing 
victims  go  up!  From  the  banks  of  the  St.  Lawrence  and 
those  of  the  Derwent — from  the  forests  of  Canada  and  the  jungles 
of  India  —  will  ascend  those  who  will  bear  witness  against  this 
British  proconsul,  and  demand  of  a  just  God  that  his  vengeance 
be  not  spared  from  so  barbarous  a  tyrant.  The  savage  of  Austra- 
lia, the  citizen  of  America,  and  the  exiled  Pole,  will  join  their 
voices  in  that  cry.  Who,  in  that  hour,  would  not  rather  be  the 
meanest  of  his  victims,  than  the  "  bold,  bad  man  "  himself!  May 
we  not  hope,  too,  that  the  punishment  due  to  crimes  so  great, 
shall  not  be  altogether  postponed  until  another  life  ?  Is  it  too 
much  to  a^k  that  his  fate,  like  that  of  other  monsters  in  human 
form,  shall  serve  to  "  point  a  moral,"  and  afford  another  proof 
that  mercy  and  justice  and  wisdom  are  the  same  ?  Shall  not 
"  mischief  haunt  the  violent  man"? 

Misery  and  death  are  said  to  be  the  greatest  of  levellers ;  but 
I  doubt  if  they  are  more  remarkable  for  equalizing  men's  condi- 
tion than  is  the  transportation  system  of  Great  Britain.  It  was 
born  of  her  bloody  code,  and  is  the  motley  child  of  a  system  that 
meted  out  the  same  punishment  to  the  woman  who  stole  five 


158 


«'il»TIV!TV     VVI»     AllVrN'I'UUKH    OP 


shillings,  to  keep  lierHelfuiKl  cliild  froin  starving,*  that  it  did  to 
the  perpetrator  of  the  moHt  ioul,  iiitdicious,  nna  unnntural  mur- 
der. The  man  whose  broach  of  triiMt  has  carried  woe  to  hun- 
dreds; the  poacher,  who  han  cxercirtcd  merely  a  natural  right  for- 
bidden by  law;  the  pickpocket,  who  was  trained  to  crime  from  his 
cradle,  if  cradle  he  ever  knew ;  and  the  seeker  ader  political  or 
social  reform,  who  has  stepped  n  little  beyond  the  line  permitted 
by  that  anomalous  concern,  the  British  Constitution  ;  —  all  these 
can  meet,  and  have  met,  on  the  same  level,  in  one  of  England's 
penal  colonies.  England  has  nlwnvs  pursued  this  course,  and  her 
action  toward  those  who  have  excited  cither  her  hatred  or  fears, 
or  both,  has  been  as  unjust  an  fortune,  relentless  as  time,  cruel 
as  the  grave.  She  has  been  impartial  in  her  manifestation  of 
power,  in  this  regard ;  and,  reversing  the  Roman  practice, 
which  spared  Ihe  humble  while  it  prostrated  the  proud,  she  has 
placed  her  t'eet  on  the  necks  of  kings,  and  trampled  on  peasants ; 
her  vengeance  being  like  the  avorice  of  n  miser,  which  disdains 
nothing.  Mary,  Queen  of  Bcots,  was  first  imprisoned,  and  then 
butchered,  by  the  English,  in  violation  alike  of  national  faith, 
chivalrous  usage,  and  the  ruleii  of  law ;  and,  in  our  own  day,  the 
French  Emperor — the  mighty  Napoleon  himself,  "the  foremost 
man  of  all  this  world"  — having  thrown  himself  upon  the  magna- 
nimity of  England,  was  only  regarded  by  her  as  a  superior  kind 
of  convict,  sent  to  one  of  her  most  unhealthy  islets,  inhumanly 
treated,  and,  if  not  literally  "done  to  death  by  felon's  hand,"  at 
least  persecuted  in  a  way  that  put  a  speedy  end  to  the  greatest 
life  that  the  world  hai  seen  idnco  Ciesar.  Ruthless  is  England's 
policy ;   hard  is  her  treatment  of  all ;  and  terribly  fearful  will 


*Thia  is  no  exaggeration,  but  lit«ral  truth.  The  following  is  a  well-authentica- 
ted story,  and,  though  it  mov  s«em  incrodiblfl,  there  is  no  doubt  or  its  truth.  One 
Jones,  a  sailor,  was  seizAd  by  t  preM|M((,  in  London,  and  sent  on  board  a  king's 
ship,  his  family  being  left  in  a  stato  of  destitutinn.  His  wife,  who  had  an  infant  a 
few  months  old,  stole  a  piece  of  linen,  of  the  value  of  four  or  five  shillings,  from  a 
draper's  shop,  intending  to  sell  it,  SM  witli  the  proceeds  to  purchase  food  to  save 
herself  and  child  from  starvation.  She  was  arrested,  tried,  condemned,  and  cxc 
cuted.  The  peculiarity  of  her  esse  etttsed  intercession  to  be  made  in  her  behalf, 
but  the  king  was  induced  not  to  exeretse  the  "  twice  blessed  quality  of  mercy," 
by  the  representations  of  certain  traders,  who  stoutly  contended  that  she  should  bo 
made  an  example  of,  because  tl^ere  hod  been  several  cases  of  shoplifting  about  the 
same  time,  in  the  region  that  was  the  scene  of  her  offence.  The  worst  remains 
to  be  told.  When  the  unhappy  woman  was  placed  in  Mie  cart,  to  be  carried  to 
Tyburn,  she  had  her  child  in  lier  arms,  and  it  was  allowed  to  nurse  until  she  was 
called  to  mount  the  scaffold  ;  and  when  It  was  taken  from  the  breast,  the  mother's 
milk  fell,  drop  by  drop,  upon  the  child's  lips !  To  my  mind,  there  is  somethina 
more  shocking  in  this  solitary  judicial  murJcr,  than  in  the  accumulated  horrors  of 
the  Bartholomew  massacre. 


CAFTAIN     UAMKL     D.    I1LU8TIS. 


159 


practice, 

d,  she  has 

peasants ; 

t  disdains 

and  then 

mal  faith, 

n  day,  the 

5  foremost 

he  magna- 

erior  kind 

inhumanly 

hand,"  at 

e  greatest 

England's 

earful  will 


I-authentica- 
truth.  One 
oard  a  king's 
I  an  infant  a 
lings,  rrom  a 
food  to  save 
ed,  and  cxc 
[1  her  behalf, 
'  of  mercy," 
fie  should  bo 
ng  about  the 
orst  remains 
ft  carried  to 
ntil  she  was 
he  mother's 
i  something 
1  horrors  of 


he  her  punishment,  when  her  long-accumulated  arrears  for  of- 
fences against  God  and  man  shall  arrive.  The  day  on  which  her 
accounts  shall  be  settled,  will  be  an  awful  one,  and  will  forever 
after  excite  among  the  nations  thoughts  as  terrible  as  we  now 
associate  with  the  story  of  the  destruction  of  the  Cities  of  the 
Plain. 

Reflections  like  those  contained  in  the  last  paragraph,  aro.se 
in  my  mind,  after  forming  an  acquaintance,  at  Van  Dicman's 
Land,  with  Mr.  Frost,  one  of  the  leading  English  Chartists.  lie 
and  two  others,  named  Williams  and  Jones,  had  been  banished 
from  home  and  all  its  endearments,  nnd  condemned  to  a  life  of 
unmitigated  toil  and  suflering,  bev  (use  they  wee  prominent 
members  of  the  ultra  radical  party  in  the  m<'ther  country.  I 
found  Mr.  Frost  to  be  a  man  possessed  of  fine  mental  powers,  a 
pleasing  address,  and  strong  attachm  mt  to  liberal  political  prin- 
ciples. The  Chartists  embrace  the  masses,  who  )  nve  no  real 
power  in  England,  save  in  times  of  great  popular  c  .'^  r.oment,  like 
those  which  shook  the  British  empire  at  thr  ^une  of  the  agination 
of  the  question  of  Parliamentary  Reform,  S(  m;;  sixteen  year,  ago, 
when  "  the  pressure  from  without "  forced  ^he  aristocracy  to  give 
up  a  portion  of  their  privileges.  They  seek  for  more  thorough 
changes  than  any  other  party  in  England  dare  avow,  such  as 
universal  suffrage,  annual  elections  of  parliament,  &.C.,  &c.,  and 
they  take  their  name  of  Chartists  from  their  desire  to  have  their 
principles  set  forth  in  a  regular  Charter,  or  instrument  of  gov- 
ernment, like  our  Constitution:  the  British  Constitution  being 
nothing  but  laws,  usages,  and  customs,  which  the  tories  call  "  the 
accumulated  wisdom  of  ages,"  but  which  most  people,  out  of  the 
conservative  party,  consider  a  mass  of  undigested  and  indigesti- 
ble absurdities  and  contradiciii:;^,  allowing  the  fullest  latitude 
for  the  practice  of  misgovernnit.^u.  In  seeking  to  carry  out  his 
principles,  Mr.  Frost  gave  offence  to  the  ruling  powers,  and  the 
result  was  his  banishment  to  Van  Dieman's  Land,  where  he  was 
confounded  with  the  woist  of  criminals,  and  subjected  to  every 
kind  of  abuse.  He  was  driven  on  the  carts  till  his  strength  was 
completely  exhausted,  and  because  he  could  not  do  all  that  his 
taskmasters  required  of  him,  he  was  sentenced  to  fourteen  days 
solitary  confinement ;  and,  when  that  sentence  had  expired,  he 
was  again  harnessed  to  the  carts,  and  driven  till  again  exhausted, 
when  another  term  in  the  dark  and  gloomy  cell,  with  bread  and 
water  to  live  on,  was  awarded  him !  Such  is  the  justice  of  Eng- 
land ;  but  the  day  will  come  when  the  world  will  think  him  a  far 
better  man  than  the  best  of  his  persecutors,  and  rank  him  among 


IGO 


CAPTIVITY     AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


those  who  sought  the  good  of  ail  mankind ;  and  it  is  a  confident 
reliance  on  the  advent  of  that  time,  that  enables  him  to  bear  with 
a  high  heart  his  unjust  exile. 

Of  the  prisoners  taken  at  the  battles  of  Prescott,  Windsor,  and 
the  Short  Hills,  ninety-one  were  transported  to  Van  Dieman's 
Land.  Of  these,  eleven  died  in  the  Colony,  and  one  on  the  out- 
ward passage.  Benjamin  Wait,  Samuel  Chandler,  and  James 
Gemmell,  made  their  escape  from  the  Island,  in  1842,  on  board 
of  whale-ships,  and  reached  home  in  safety.  Aaron  Dresser  and 
Stephen  S.  Wright  were  pardoned,  in  June,  1843,  for  capturing 
bush-rangers.  Fifty-eight  were  pardoned  by  the  British  govern- 
ment, on  application  of  Mr.  Everett,  American  Minister  at  Lon- 
don, as  will  appear  by  his  letter,  at  the  conclusion  of  this  chap- 
ter ;  but,  as  one  of  them  had  previously  been  liberated  by  the 
hand  of  death,  and  is  counted  among  the  deceased,  the  number 
actually  released  was  fifty-seven.  Others  may  have  been  par- 
doned since  Mr.  Everett  left  England,  but  I  have  no  information 
to  that  effect.  If  there  has  been  no  addition  to  the  number  lib- 
erated, seventeen  now  remain  in  captivity.  Of  those  emanci- 
pated, Linus  W.  Miller  states  that  there  were  sixteen  in  the  Col- 
ony when  he  left,  in  September,  1845.  They  had  not  the  means 
of  procuring  passages  home.  Forty-three  had  succeeded  in  get- 
ting away,  nearly  all  of  them  in  whale-ships,  with  a  long  voyage 
to  make  before  they  could  return  to  America. 

With  a  view  of  obtaining  information  in  regard  to  the  steps 
taken  to  procure  our  pardon,  I  addressed  a  letter  to  the  Honora- 
ble Edward  Everett,  now  President  of  Harvard  University,  and 
formerly  American  Minister  at  the  Court  of  St.  James.  On 
the  following  day  I  received  a  very  friendly  note  from  Mr.  Ev- 
erett, acknowledging  the  reception  of  my  letter,  and  assuring  me 
that,  as  soon  as  his  other  engagements  would  permit,  he  would 
cheerfully  comply  with  my  request,  and  furnish  me  with  the  de- 
sired information.  A  few  days  afterward,  I  received  the  very 
interesting  letter  *.vhich  is  appended  to  this  chapter,  and  which 
will  be  read  with  much  satisfaction  by  the  liberated  captives  and 
their  friends.  It  was  a  fortunate  circumstance  for  the  exiles, 
that  our  country  was  represented,  at  the  British  court,  by  a  man 
whose  character  and  talents  were  such  as  to  command  the 
respect  and  admiration  of  those  high  functionaries  with  whom  he 
was  in  constant  diplomatic  intercourse.  Mr.  Everett's  letter  is 
alike  creditable  to  his  head  and  his  heart ;  and  while  I  honor 
him  as  a  ripe  scholar,  an  eloquent  orator,  and  a  profound  states- 
man, I  must  still  say  that  his  friendly  deeds  of  kindness  to  his 


mfident 
Jar  with 

lor,  and 
lieman'a 
he  out- 
James 
\n  board 
iser  and 
ipturing 
govern- 
at  Lon- 
is  chap- 
by  the 
number 
en  par- 
rmation 
iber  lib- 
leraanci- 
:he  CoJ. 
|e  means 
1  in  get- 
[  voyage 

le  steps 
Honora- 
ity,  and 
s.     On 
Mr.  Ev- 
ring  me 
3  would 
the  de- 
le very 
[  which 
ires  and 
exiles, 
a  man 
nd   the 
lom  he 
etter  is 
'■  honor 
states- 
I  to  his 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.    IIEUSTIS. 


IGl 


unfortunate  countrymen  are  more  worthy  of  praise,  and  will 
secure  for  him  a  brighter  wreath  of  fame,  than  the  most  suc- 
cessful of  his  literary  and  political  labors.  It  is  a  coincidence 
worthy  of  remark,  that  the  ship  which  bore  me  to  my  native  land, 
was  named  in  honor  of  the  man  who  had  been  so  prominently 
instrumental  in  procuring  my  pardon. 

The  suggestion  of  Mr.  Everett,  that  a  fund  should  be  placed 
at  the  disposal  of  our  foreign  ministers,  to  be  used  in  relieving 
distressed  countrymen,  is  worthy  of  the  serious  attention  of  those 
who  have  the  direction  of  our  public  affairs.  The  fact  that 
American  citizens  are  now  in  exile,  unable  to  return  to  their  na- 
tive country,  is,  of  itself,  sufficient  to  urge  immediate  action 
on  this  subject.  In  the  name  of  humanity,  I  call  upon  our  gov- 
ernment to  assist  those  unfortunate  men  in  returning  to  their 
home  and  friends. 

The  following  is  the  highly  interesting  letter  of  Mr.  Everett, 
above  alluded  to :  — 

Cambridge,  5th  Dec,  1846. 

Dear  Sir  :  I  wiU  now  endeavor  to  comply  with  your  request  to  be  furnished 
witlt  some  account  of  the  steps  taken  by  me,  to  procure  tne  liberation  of  the 
American  citizens  who  were  transported  to  Van  Dieman's  Land,  for  having  taken 
part  in  the  movement  in  Canada,  in  1838.  My  official  correspondence  on  this 
subject  was  quite  voluminous,  but  the  following  is  the  substance,  and  will,  I  sup- 
pose, answer  your  purpose. 

Among  the  pnpers  which  I  found  awaiting  me  in  London,  on  my  arrival  there, 
in  November,  1841,  were  petitions  for  the  release  of  one  or  two  of  the  Americans 
in  Van  Dieman's  Land,  with  private  letters  requesting  me  to  inteifere  in  their  be- 
half. These  documents  were  transmitted  to  me  through  the  Department  of  State, 
but  it  was  led  wholly  to  my  discretion  what  use  I  should  make  of  them.  The  re- 
lations between  the  two  countries,  at  that  time,  were  not  favorable  to  any  move- 
ment for  the  release  of  the  prisoners.  I  bore  their  case,  however,  constantlv  in 
mind,  and  occasionally  mentioned  it  informally  to  Lord  Aberdeen.  While  Lord 
Ashburton  was  at  Washington,  in  1842,  our  government  requested  his  good  offices 
in  this  matter ;  and,  ailer  the  ratification  of  the  treaty,  some  correspondence  on 
the  subject  took  p^ace  between  Mr.  Webster  and  Mr.  Fox.  Having  noticed  this 
correspondence  in  the  American  papers,  1  took  occasion,  early  in  December,  to 
call  the  attention  of  the  British  Minister  to  the  subject  more  particularly  than  I 
had  felt  authorized  to  do  before  ;  and  he  assured  me  he  was  willing,  whenever  his 
government  granted  an  amnesty  to  the  Canadians  implicated,  that  it  should  be  ex- 
tended to  the  citizens  of  the  United  States.  This  seemed  to  me  all  that  could  be 
reasonably  asked }  but  a  good  deal  of  delay  took  place  before  the  measure  was  de- 
cided on.' 

In  the  mean  time,  Messrs.  Wright  and  Dresser,  two  of  the  Americans  concerned, 
had  been  pardoned,  in  consequence  of  some  services  rendered  to  the  local  magis- 
tracy. Tney  called  upon  me,  in  London,  on  the  26th  December,  1843,  and  I  am 
glad  to  learn  from  you  that  they  were  pleased  with  their  reception,  and  that  they 
reached  home  in  safety. 

In  the  month  of  January,  1844,  information  having  reached  our  government  that 
a  general  amnesty  had  been  granted  to  the  Canadians,  I  was  directed  to  bring  the 
case  of  our  countrymen  informally  to  the  consideration  of  Lord  Aberdeen.  He 
told  me  that  no  such  comprehensive  measure  had  been  adopted,  but  that  the  Gov- 
ernor-General had  been  clothed  with  a  large  discretion,  to  grant  a  pardon  to  all 


1C2 


CAPTIVITY    AND     ADVENTURES     OF 


such  individuals  as  might,  by  themselves  or  through  their  friends,  petition  for  it, 

Erovided  there  were  no  aggravating  circumstances  against  them :  and  he  renewed 
is  promise  that,  ad  far  as  dependeu  on  him,  the  same  course  should  be  pursued 
toward  American  citizens.  Lord  Stanley,  also,  the  Colonial  Minister,  gave  me  the 
same  assurance.  The  appIi(!atlon  was  to  be  forwarded  through  the  Department 
of  State  to  the  American  Minister  in  London.  1  immediately  presented  the  only 
application,  in  proper  form,  which  was  then  in  my  hands.  It  was  in  favor  of  Mr. 
David  Allen,  and  was  promptly  granted.  I  of  course  gave  our  government  imme- 
diate  intelligence  of  these  events,  and  also  wrote  to  the  friends  of  some  of  the  in- 
dividuals concerned,  letting  them  know  what  was  necessary  to  be  done. 

As  soon  as  the  information  could  take  effect  in  the  United  States,  petitions  be- 
gan to  be  forwarded  to  me  by  tlic  Department  in  considerable  numbers.  Ten  were 
received  at  once,  in  April,  1844,  and  seventeen  in  the  month  of  May  following. 
Your  case  was  one  of  tlie  seventeen.  It  was  on  the  3l8t  of  May  that  I  wrote  the 
letter  to  Mr.  Hathaway,  our  Consul  at  Hobart  Town,  of  which  he  spoke  to  you. 
In  this  letter,  I  gave  him  a  list  of  those  who  had  been  pardoned,  twenty -eight  in 
number,  in  addition  to  Messrs.  Wright  and  Dresser,  and  I  informed  hun  of  the 
willingness  of  the  British  government  to  pardon  all  whose  friends  applied.  Com- 
miserating the  condition  of  those  who  might  not  have  parents  or  otlier  relations, 
to  take  an  interest  in  their  release,  I  requested  Mr.  Hathaway,  "  if  he  heard  of  any 
poor  fellow  that  had  no  friends,  to  let  me  know  his  name,  &c.,  and  I  would  en- 
deavor to  get  him  pardoned."  Mr.  Hathaway's  answer  did  not  reach  me  till  May, 
1845.  It  contained  a  list  of  a  considerable  number  still  in  Van  Dieman's  Laml, 
but  I  had  already  obtained  the  pardon  of  most  of  them. 

1  find  by  a  dispatch  of  the  29th  October,  1844,  that  forty-one  in  the  whole  had 
at  that  time  been  pardoned,  and,  on  subsequent  applications,  seventeen  were  ad- 
ded to  the  number.  I  send  ^ou  a  list  of  the  whole,  out  1  am  inclined  to  think  that 
one  or  two  individuals  are  given  twice,  under  names  somewhat  varied. 

I  suggested  to  the  Department  the  propriety  of  making  some  provision  to  aid 
those  thus  liberated,  in  tneir  return,  as  there  might  be  cases  where,  without  such 
assistance,  it  would  be  impossible  for  them  to  get  home.  1  was  led  to  make  this 
suggestion  by  the  difficulty  experienced  by  Messrs.  Wright  and  Dresser,  although 
provided  with  a  free  passage  to  London  by  the  British  colonial  government.  The 
Secretary  of  State  decided,  with  great  regret,  that  there  was  no  appropriation  from 
which  such  aid  could  be  legally  given. 

I  was  led  on  this  as  on  some  other  occasions,  to  lament  that  no  flind  is  placed 
nt  the  disposal  of  our  foreign  ministers,  for  the  relief  of  distressed  countrymen,  and 
no  discretion  allowed  in  the  application  of  the  contingent  fund  of  the  legation  for 
that  purpose.  So  far  is  this  from  being  the  case,  that,  having  once  expended 
£13.18.2  for  the  defence  of  an  American  seaman,  on  trial  for  his  life,  whose  friend- 
Jess  case  had  been  represented  to  me  by  the  chaplain  of  Newgate,  that  charge  was 
disallowed  in  the  settlement  of  my  accounts,  since  my  return,  although  I  have 
reason  to  think  my  interference  saved  the  man's  life. 

In  eference  to  an  expression  in  the  warrant  for  your  pardon,  that  it  took  place 
"  in  consideration  of  some  circumstances  which  had  been  humbly  representeu  "  to 
the  Queen,  you  express  your  belief  that  some  personal  application  may  have  been 
made  by  me  in  your  favor.  Such,  however,  is  not  the  case.  The  words  quoted 
by  you  are  probably  words  of  official  form  in  all  warrants  for  pardon.  The  usages 
of  the  British  government  would  not  permit  a  foreign  minister,  under  ordinary  cir- 
cumstances, to  make  a  personal  application  to  the  Sovereign,  on  a  matter  of  busi- 
ness ;  nor  was  there,  in  this  case,  any  occasion  for  it.  As  soon  as  the  ministry 
made  up  their  minds  to  pardon  the  Canadians,  every  application  which  I  made  in 
favor  of  an  American  was  granted,  as  soon  as  it  could  pass  through  the  forms  of 
office.  If  there  was  any  casual  delay,  1  always  found  it  easy  to  hasten  a  decision,, 
by  dropping  a  hint  in  the  proper  quarter.  The  most  friendly  disposition  was  roan- 
itested  throughout  by  Lord  Aberdeen  and  Lord  Stanley.  It  was  my  practice,  when 
an  application  was  forwarded  to  me  from  the  Department  of  State,  to  address  a 
note  to  the  Foreign  Office,  as  ^non  as  it  could  be  prepared,  frequentl]^  the  same 
day.  I  think  I  can  say  that  no  American  had  a  day  adaed  to  his  captivity,  by  my 
neglect. 


ion  for  it, 
renewed 
le  pursued 
Vvc  me  the 
Pepartment 
Id  the  only 
Ivor  of  Mr. 
lent  irnme- 
of  the  in- 

titions  be- 
Ten  were 
following, 
wrote  the 
ke  to  you. 
ty-eight  in 
hiin  of  tlie 
led.  Com- 
er relations, 
eard  of  any 
would  en- 
le  till  May, 
nan's  Land, 

3  whole  had 
;n  were  ad- 
o  think  that 

ision  to  aid 
vithout  sueh 
to  make  this 
<er,  although 
ment.  The 
)riation  from 

nd  is  placed 
itrymen,  and 
legation  for 
e  expended 
hose  friend* 
:  charge  was 
>ugh  I  have 

t  took  place 
esenteu  "  to 
y  have  been 
ords  quoted 
The  usages 
rdinary  cir- 
Aer  of  busi- 
tie  ministry 
I  I  made  in 
le  forms  ol 
I  a  decision, 
a  was  roan- 
ctice,  when 
>  address  a 
ly  the  same 
irity,  by  my 


CAPTAIN    DANIEL    D.    IIEUSTIS. 


163 


I  took  ap  interest  in  the  fate  of  yourself  and  your  associates,  because  I  had 
reason  to  think  you  were  mostly  young  men,  who  had  been  led  by  false  representa- 
tions of  the  state  of  things  in  Canada,  iq  suppose  that  the  movement,  in  1838,  re- 
sembled the  revolutionary  war  in  the  Unitea  States.  Several,  as  I  perceived  from 
the  memorials  in  their  favor,  had  led  aged  parents  or  other  relatives,  at  home,  in 

freat  affliction.    I  had  also  formed,  Msides,  a  very  unfavorable  opinion  of  Van 
Neman's  Land,  as  a  school  of  moral  improvement. 

If  any  further  information,  in  my  power  to  furnish,  is  desired  by  you,  I  shall  be 
h^py  to  afford  it;  in  the  mean  time.  I  remain,  very  truly, 

Your  well-wisher, 

EDWARD  EVERETT. 
Mr.  Daniel  D.  Heustis.        v  .-,,,..     . 


List  of  American  citizens  pardoned  on  application  of  Mr.  Everett. 

David  Allen,  Thomas  Baker,  Henry  V.  Barnum,  John  Berry,  George  T.  Brown, 
Chauncey  Bugby,  Robert  G.  Collins,  John  Cronkhitc,  Luther  Darlw,  Leonard  De- 
lano, Moses  A.  Dutcher,  Elon  Fellows,  James  DeWitt  Fero,  Michael  Fraer, 
Emmanuel  Garrison,  William  Gates,  John  Gilman,  George  S.  Goodrich,  Gideon 
A.  Goodrich,  Jerry  Griggs,  Nelson  J.  Grifrgs,  John  S.  Guttridge,  Daniel  D.  Heustis, 
Garrett  Hicks,  David  House,  Daniel  Liscomb,  Hiram  Loop,  Norman  Mallory, 
Robert  Marsh,  Jehiel  H.  Martin,  Linus  W.  Miller,  Benjamin  Mott,  Samuel  New* 
come,  Jacob  Paddock,  James  Pierce,  Ira  Policy,  Solomon  Reynolds,  Riley  M. 
Stewart,  Hiram  Sharp,  Chauncey  Sheldon,  Henry  Shew,  Orin  W.  Smith,  Samuel 
Snow,  Elizur  Stevens,  Joseph  Stewart,  Thomas  Stockton,*  John  G.  Swansberg, 
Alvin  B.  Sweet,  John  Thomas,  Joseph  Thompson,  Samuel  Washburn,  Nathan 
Whiting,  Riley  Whitney,  James  P.  Williams,  John  C.  Williams,  Edward  A.  Wil- 
son, Bemis  Woodbury,  Elijah  C.  Woodman  — 58. 


*Poor  Stockton  died  before  the  notice  of  bis  pardon  reached  him. 


(*■ 


164 


■?  ".,  ■■■> 


■      HI'. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

Present  Condition  of  Canada — Sir  Francis  Bond  Hea^s  "Emi' 
grant" — Disaffection  of  the  Loyalists — Appointment  of 
Patriots  to  Office — Inconsistency  manifested  by  the  Govern' 
ment  in  these  Appointments  —  Concluding  Reflections. 

On  my  return  to  America,  one  of  the  first  things  to  which  I 
turned  my  attention  was  the  present  condition  of  Canada.  I 
wished  to  know  whether  the  patriot  movements  had  been  produc- 
tive of  any  good  results.  I  have  learned,  with  much  satisfaction, 
that  the  rule  of  the  unprincipled  oligarchy  whose  overthrow  we 
aimed  at  has  been  extinguished,  and  that,  too,  by  the  hands  of 
the  conservative  party  of  Gkeat  Britain.  This  last  fact  is  doubly 
gratifying,  because  it  was  to  obtain  the  favor  and  support  of  the 
English  conservatives,  in  the  hope  of  thereby  being  enabled  to 
make  their  own  domination  perpetual  in  the  North  American 
Colonies,  that  prompted  the  loyalists  of  Canada  to  those  cruelties 
and  acts  of  oppression  that  have  made  the  names  of  their  military 
and  civil  leaders  as  infamous,  in  the  annals  of  blood-stained 
tyranny,  as  those  of  Kirke  and  Jeffries. 

I  have  read,  with  some  little  edification,  and  a  great  deal  of 
amusement,  a  new  work  from  the  pen  of  that  very  clever  writer, 
but  exceedingly  bad  ruler,  Sir  Francis  Bond  Head,  entitled 
"  7%«  Emigrant"  and  which  is  mainly  devoted  to  setting  forth, 
in  terms  half  bitter,  half  humorous,  the  manifold  grievances  that 
the  "  loyal  Canadians  "  have  suffered  at  the  hands  of  the  home 
government.  I  can  commend  this  work  to  my  old  comrades,  and 
to  all  the  well-wishers  of  the  people  of  Canada,  as  one  likely  to 
afford  much  consolation  to  them  in  moments  of  despondency.  If 
is  the  regular  wail  of  a  lickspittle  of  an  aristocracy,  who  find? 
himself  and  his  immediate  friends  kicked  out  of  power,  in  the 
most  decided  manner,  by  the  very  men,  to  obtain  whose  counte- 
nance they  shed  patriot  blood  like  water,  and  doomed  scores  of 
American  citizens  to  the  horrid  life  of  penal  colonists.  It  is  the 
growl  of  the  bloodhound,  at  not  being  allowed  to  gnaw  the  bones 
of  the  victims  that  he  and  the  remainder  of  the  pack  have  hunted 
down.     The  hunters  and  hounds  having  quarrelled  over  their 


ADVENTURliS     OF     CAPTAIN     HKUHTIS. 


lor. 


prey,  the  former  have  been  compelled  to  apply  the  lash  to  the 
latter,  and  to  scourge  them  from  the  field.  All  this  is  very  grat- 
ifying ;  for,  it  must  be  confessed,  we  generally  take  delight  in 
witnessing  the  quarrels  of  our  enemies. 

The  feeling  by  which  the  loyalists  of  Canada  are  now  anima- 
ted, may  be  learned  from  an  expression  that  Sir  Francis  says  he 
lately  heard  uttered  by  a  young  Canadian  of  that  party,  who  re- 
cently visited  England,  namely,  that  "  there  is  no  fear  now  of  any 
rebellion  in  Canada;  the  republican  party  have  it  all 
TUEiR  OWN  WAY,  SO  there  is  no  one  to  rebel  but  the  loyal!"  I 
do  not  think  there  is  much  danger,  perhaps  I  should  say  hope, 
of  so  anomalous  an  undertaking,  in  Canada,  as  a  loyalist  re- 
bellion ;  but  the  faithfulness  of  these  disappointed  creatures  to 
the  British  crown,  will  be  caused  more  by  their  fears  than  by  any 
chivalrous  regard  they  may  feel  for  their  "  Sovereign  Lady,  the 
dueen."  So  long  as  the  home  government  tolerated  and  sanc- 
tioned the  selfish  proceedings  of  this  bigoted  faction,  their  loyalty 
^was  made  manifest  by  unnumbered  acts  of  oppression ;  but,  when 
that  countenance  was  withdrawn,  their  devotion  to  the  interests  of 
the  crown  cooled  down  amazingly,  and  I  doubt  not  they  were  half 
inclined  to  turn  republicans !  But  Queen  Victoria  has  a  good 
security  for  the  fidelity  of  her  "  loyal  subjects  "  in  North  Amer- 
ica, in  their  fears.  The  British  government  at  least  protects 
them,  though  it  will  not  cherish  them  as  the  exclusive  objects  of 
the  favor  of  the  colonial  oflice.  It  provides  for  their  safety, 
though  so  cruel  as  to  deprive  them  of  the  pleasant  recreation  of 
exterminating  their  republican  fellow-subjects.  I  do  not  say  that 
even  the  smallest  injury  would  be  inflicted  upon  the  Canadian 
loyalists,  were  that  country  to  become  independent;  but  they 
know  what  they  deserve,  and  they  sec  in  the  British  government 
their  only  protection  against  the  reprisals  of  their  opponents,  and 
they  will  adhere  to  that  government  so  long  as  they  believe  it 
extends  a  shield  over  them.  For  their  loyalty,  no  man  would 
give  much ;  but  their  regard  for  interest  and  personal  safety  will 
keep  them  consistent  for  years  to  come.  They  see  in  every  sup- 
posed republican,  a  man  thirsting  for  their  blood.  As  Solomon 
says,  "  the  wicked  flee  when  no  man  pursueth." 

One  fact  mentioned  by  Ex-Governor  Head,  as  illustrative  of 
the  present  policy  of  England  toward  Canadians,  and  upon  which 
he  expends  a  great  deal  of  indignation,  I  must  allude  to.  I  can- 
not be  suspected  of  holding  many  opinions  in  common  with  the 
hero  of  Toronto,  but  it  strikes  me  as  being  singular  conduct,  on 
the  part  of  the  British  government,  that  it  should  elevate  to  high 


..*■/ 


160 


CAPTIVITY    AND    ADVENTUUE8    OP 


and  reapoiiNible  ofllccs,  as  it  appears  to  have  done,  men  who  took 
prominent  parts  in  the  attempt  to  subvert  British  domination  in 
the  Cnnadas,  and  vet  allow  the  humbler  portion  of  the  "rebels" 
to  languish  in  exile.  Certainly,  the  inconsistency  of  such  con- 
duct is  as  great  as  its  injustice,  and  no  honorable  government 
would  be  guilty  of  pursuing  it.  By  giving  honorable  and  lucra- 
tive placcM  to  some  of  Hie  leaders  in  the  attempt  to  make 
Canada  independent,  the  English  ministers  admit  one  of  two 
things :  either  the  men  thus  elevated  have  been  rewarded  for 
treachery  to  their  old  comrades  and  supporters,  which  would  be 
the  acme  of  baseness  on  the  part  of  those  holding  the  appointing 
power,  or,  the  admission  is  practically  made  that  they  acted 
right.  Taking  this  last  view  of  the  matter,  as  I  am  charitably 
bound  to  do,  as  the  most  honorable  to  all  parties,  the  question 
occurs  —  Why,  then,  punish  those  wHo  took  subordinate  parts  in 
the  enterprise,  and  who  looked  for  no  other  reward,  and  couid 
have  received  none  other,  than  such  as  would  have  been  equally 
shared  by  the  whole  body  of  the  Canadian  people  ?  This  is  a 
question  that  no  honest  Englishman  can  either  reply  to  conscien- 
tiously, or  hear  without  blushing  for  his  country.  That  the  men 
who  "stirred  up"  the  rebellion  —  if  such  the  patriot  movement 
may  be  called  —  should  be  enjoying  the  especial  favors  of  the 
government,  at  the  very  time  that  those  who  merely  assisted  in 
an  attempt  to  carry  their  plans  into  execution  were  suffering  all 
the  horrors  of  transportation,  is  a  fair  specimen  of  the  justice 
and  impartiality  of  tne  British  government.  It  is  like  hanging 
an  accessary,  and  rewarding  the  principal. 

It  should  be  borne  in  iiind,  that  many  Canadians  were  trans- 
ported, as  well  as  Americans,  for  the  offence  of  joining  the 
standard  of  the  patriot  leaders.  To  be  consistent,  the  govern- 
ment ought  to  grant  every  one  of  those  men  a  handsome  pension 
during  the  remainder  of  their  lives.  They  have  suffered  much 
in  consequence  of  their  connection  with  the  patriot  movement, 
while  the  leaders,  under  whom  they  acted,  and  who  have  now 
been  exalted,  suffered  comparatively  little,  except  in  being  com- 
pelled to  lc»ve  Canada,  for  a  short  time,  after  which  they  re- 
turned, in  peace  and  safety. 

When  we  call  to  mind  the  fact  that  many  of  the  noblest  men 
in  Canada,  guilty  of  no  crime,  perished  on  the  scaffold,  in  conse- 
quence of  their  firm  adhesion  to  the  popular  cause,  we  are  some- 
what astonished  to  find  others,  who  were  actively  and  promi- 
nently engaged  in  the  same  cause,  after  the  lapse  of  a  few  years, 
elevated  to  offices  of  distinction  by  the  very  government  that 


CAPTAIN     DANIEL     D.    IIEUSTIS. 


167 


who  took 
nation  in 
"rebels" 
such  con- 
>vernment 
ind  lucra- 

to  make 

le  of  two 

arded  for 

would  be 

ppointing 

ley  acted 

charitably 

t  question 

te  parts  in 

and  couid 

sn  equally 

This  is  a 

conscien- 

it  the  men 

movement 

ors  of  the 

issisted  in 

iffering  all 

he  justice 

e  hanging 

fere  trans- 
dining  the 
le  govern- 
ie  pension 
(red  much 
movement, 
have  now 
eing  com- 
1  they  re- 

^blest  men 
,  in  conse- 
are  some- 
nd  promi- 
few  years, 
imeut  that 


murdered  their  associates.  But  so  it  i8,  and  the  reader  can  form 
his  own  opinion  of  the  nature  of  British  rule  in  Canada  from  this 
simple  fact.  The  blood  of  the  slaughtered  victims  was  hardly 
dry,  before  it  was  discovered  that  their  offence  deserved  no  pun- 
ishment !  Wives  and  children  have  been  made  widows  and  or- 
phans, and  driven  from  their  homes,  stripped  of  property,  broken 
in  heart,  and  are  sighing  over  their  hard  fortune,  and,  after  all,  it 
turns  out  that  there  was  no  occasion  for  thus  distressing  them ! 
Really,  the  freaks  of  tyrants  make  sad  havoc  in  the  world. 

In  conclusion,  I  may  be  permitted  to  say,  in  answer  to  the 
question  that  is  sometimes  put  to  the  "  rebellious "  Canadians, 
and  their  active  American  friends,  that,  in  looking  back  over  my 
career,  and  taking  into  account  the  severe  sufferings  and  the 
waste  of  tijne,  at  an  important  period  of  life,  that  fell  to  my  lot, 
I  do  not  regret  the  course  I  pursued.  I  acted  honestly,  in  en- 
deavoring to  aid  an  oppressed  people;  I  acted,  though  in  an 
humble  way,  as  did  those  great  and  good  men  who  came  to  the 
assistance  of  our  fathers  during  the  war  of  the  Revolution. 
That  the  Canadian  people,  in  whose  behalf  we  fought,  were  less 
true  and  faithful  to  the  cause  of  liberty  than  our  revolutionary 
sires,  is  doubtless  true.  That  we  were,  to  some  extent,  deceived 
in  believing  that  thousands  stood  ready  to  join  us  as  soon  as  we 
should  make  our  appearance  on  Canadian  soil,  is  also  true. 
Their  sympathies  were  with  us,  but  their  fears  of  British  revenge 
prevented  them  from  rushing  to  our  standard.  The  greater  part 
of  the  Americans  who  embarked  with  us  in  the  expedition,  in- 
cluding the  highest  in  command,  also  proved  unequal  to  the 
emergency,  and  ingloriously  retreated.  A  Spartan  band  was 
left  to  meet  the  hosts  of  Britain,  and,  if  we  failed,  it  was  no 
proof  that  we  were  fighting  in  a  bad  cause,  or  that  we  did  not 
fight  bravely.  The  consequences,  to  us,  were  terrible.  If  com- 
plete success  had  crowned  our  efforts,  the  world  would  have  re- 
garded us  as  friends  of  liberty  and  humanity.  As  it  is,  we  feel 
conscious  of  having  dcme  our  duty  faithfully  and  fearlessly,  and 
we  have  nothing  to  repent  of  A  melancholy  feeling  will  arise, 
however,  as  I  call  to  recollection  the  brave  men  who  either  fell 
by  my  side,  or  were  doomed  to  test  in  their  persons  the  extent 
of  British  hate ;  but  it  is  subdued  by  the  firm  belief,  that  from 
their  blood  will  arise  the  armed  legions  who  are  to  strike  down 
the  piratical  flag  of  England  on  this  continent.  They  have  not 
died  in  vain;  and  though  we  may,  in  one  sense,  talk  of  their 
failure  to  accomplish  the  end,  yet  they  did  not  fail ;  for,  to  use 
the  language  of  one  who  sacrificed  genius,  fortune,  and  life,  in 


AOTBNTDREB    OF    CAPTA#'-|iEt}8TI8. 


lib  endeayors  to  aMist  a  pec^le  who  were  struggling  to  bring 
iMieic  fVeedom  to  her  ancient  seat,  the  laud  of  Lednid*« "  nnd  The- 
ifeielocles, — 

«« They  never  fail,  who  die 
In  a  great  eauae  :  the  block  maj  aoak  their  geire ; 
Their  heads  may  sodden  in  the  aun ;  their  lunba 
Be  atrnnf  to  city  gates  and  castle  walb— 
Ditt  still  their  spirit  walks  abroad.    Though  years 
Kbpsf ,  and  otliers  share  as  dark  a  doom, 
Hiepr  but  augment  the  deep  and  sweeninf  thoughts 
Which  overpower  all  others,  and  cooanot 
The  world  at  last  to  freedom." 


i> 


JD 


to  bring 
nnd  The- 


